


A Pirate's Life for Me - Sanders Sides

by Esme_The_Writer



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Angst, Blood, Caring Logic | Logan Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders is Extra, Death, Evil Deceit | Janus Sanders, F/M, Fem Janus, Fem Patton, Fluff, Kissing, Logan is a buff mermaid, M/M, Mermaids, Morality | Patton Sanders is a Good Friend, Morality | Patton Sanders-centric, Pirates, Remus is a drunk sailor, Roman is a pirate captain, Sailing, Swordfighting, Thomas is a Captain, Virgil is kinda evil at first
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:42:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 54,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25823089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Esme_The_Writer/pseuds/Esme_The_Writer
Summary: It had been months since Patton had donned boys clothing and left New York on Captain Thomas' ship, the Crofter, but her adventure was only just starting. She will soon have to deal with mythical creatures, infamous pirates and new struggles she would have never been able to forsee, all while hampered by the drunken duke. Can she escape the terror she found at sea, or will she become one with the bones that decorate the ocean floor?This fic is based off of @maggie_4_ 's artwork. (That's her instagram) so go and check her out she's awesome!
Relationships: Logic | Logan Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders
Comments: 57
Kudos: 35





	1. Salt

Patton lent against the railings of The Crofter, enjoying the breeze in the heat that had been building since they'd turned their trajectory South. The Captain had left her in charge of monitoring the fishing net, which was probably the only job she wasn't going to completely screw up. It consisted of standing and, if the rope moved, calling someone to help her pull it up.

She'd been on the ship for months now, and still hadn't decided whether she hated or loved it. The work was harder than she'd expected, far harder. When she'd first donned boys clothing and signed up in New York, her body had been weak from weeks of struggling to feed herself and her hands had been soft from the lack of physical labour throughout the majority of her life. In hindsight, she really should have thought the decision through. For those first few weeks, when her muscles had ached and her fingers had bled all night and through to the next day, she had spent every waking moment wondering if she'd made the right choice. Sometimes, she still wondered.

But, at that moment, when the wind was cooling the sweat on her brow, the water was foaming beneath her as the boat cut smoothly through it and she was completely alone leaning against the side of the ship, she had never felt more at home.

Food wasn't plentiful, but it was more than she'd had to eat in months, so she wasn't about to start complaining. The work may be hard, and most of the jobs were far outside her limited skillset, as the Captain had quickly realised, but it sure beat working in a brothel, which was what she had been about to turn to when she'd found the poster asking for deckhands. Of course, she hadn't actually thought she'd get the job, but it seemed stupid not to try. She'd had nothing to lose. The worst that could happen was she would be thrown in jail for a day for pretending to be a boy. At least it would have gotten her a bed for the night. To her surprise, donning a loose shirt and tucking the lengths of her hair into a head scarf was enough to convince just about anyone you were a boy. No one had questioned her in the months since she'd boarded the ship. She'd been cutting her hair regularly, but still wore the scarf, more out of habit than anything. Captain Thomas might suspect something, but what was he going to do? He couldn't exactly drop her off somewhere; they hadn't seen land in weeks.

"Land!" called Emile from high in the crows nest. Okay then, maybe Patton was in more trouble than she'd thought.

"It's land ho!" called up Remus, appearing from the hatch that led to the rum stores. "That's how you announce it properly, Panini!"

"It's not my job to label the land. Personally, I have never found it to be exceptionally slutty! And my name is Picani!"

Patton couldn't help but grin. Remus was probably the most outrageous person she had ever met. She felt a need to write down everything that spewed out of his mouth only because she knew she would never hear anything like it again. Dr Emile Picani was almost his opposite. He seemed completely oblivious to everything happening around him, to the point where he got surprised by a wave. On a boat. Supposedly, he was a doctor, but Patton had never seen any evidence of this.

"Do you recognise it, Doctor?" called the Captain from the upper deck, extending his spyglass and looking the direction Emile had indicated.

"No, it's only a small port, but they'll have what we need."

"What do we need?" asked Patton, making sure she used her deep voice. She knew it wasn't particularly convincing, but it did the job. "A new crew?" She laughed, grinning up at Emile who smiled kindly back. Her jokes were nothing to be proud of, but they were good for breaking any ice.

"Well, the rum supplies have taken a battering." said Thomas, shooting a glare at Remus. "And the salt for the fish is running low as well. It also depends how much you have in your net, Pat."

"Erm," Patton lent back, squinting as the white-tipped waves to try and see the net below the water. "Nothing yet, Cap'in."

"Maybe the weird stringy guy sitting on the railing is scaring them off." sneered Remus, swinging himself into the rigging and hanging upside down in front of Patton's face.

"Maybe they think the creepy shouty guy hanging upside down is a warning for fish to stay away." retorted Patton, losing momentum with each word.

"I - What?"

"I'm saying you look like a dead fish." explained Patton, almost apologetically.

"Rap it up, it looks like we're gonna need fish as well as salt to rub it in. I think you men periodically forget that we're running on a tight schedule! If we don't pick up this order by the end of this month, none of you are getting another job. You get that don't you?" Thomas's voice was harsh, but they all knew he didn't mean it. Underneath the upturned hat, he was a real softie. Patton had caught him chatting with the seagulls before, talking about boys he found attractive. She doubted she could have found a Captain that would have made her feel safer.

"Emile, I want you to stay on the ship. We don't know how friendly this place is, I don't want to come back and find no ship where I left a ship. Got that? Patton and Remus, you're coming with me, just so I can make sure you don't accidentally sink the ship while I'm gone."

"Got it, Cap'in." Patton pushed off the railing and ran to grab her dagger. Originally, she'd been given a pistol, but when she'd almost blown a hole in the hull of the boat that had been down-graded to a cutlass. Even then, she had struggled walking along the deck without poking everything she moved past, so she'd ended up with a sad little excuse for a knife. Still, it was better than nothing.

"And Remus, put a shirt on for God's sake."

Patton stifled a giggle. It was a change seeing Remus wearing pants! The odds of him donning a shirt were exceedingly low, but it seemed Thomas had hope for him yet.

The rest of the crew pulled them into the dock as the three of them scrambled to gather anything they might need. Patton checked her head-scarf in the cracked under-deck mirror before grabbing a shoulder sack and running to join the Captain next to the gangway. Remus took far longer to emerge, although Patton couldn't imagine what had taken so much time. He looked exactly the same as ever, with shells and bones woven into his long hair, multiple necklaces hanging around his throat and wearing nothing but low waisted pants only held to his hips by a thin piece of twine. Most of his skin was decorated with tattoos, each one he claimed gave him a different rank in each country he had visited. According to him, he was a Duke in England, but no one believed him. It still earned him his nickname.

They left the ship in charge of Emile and the other deck hands, making their way onto the humming port. The ground held a strange solidarity under her feet. She felt as unsteady now as she had when she'd first boarded the ship and felt the sea riving beneath her.

"Name of the ship, name of the Captain and reason for being here." asked a surly worker who'd been watching their approach.

"The Crofter, Captain Thomas, supply run." said Thomas, looking around with his hands on his hips, as if he was considering buying up the whole island. It was a beautiful place, with a great green forest stretching behind the small market town and mountains rearing up behind that. Still, they were only a merchant ship, and they hadn't even picked up their cargo yet.

"Right, be gone by sundown, got dat?" The man sidled off, wrinkling his nose at Patton as he left. 

"That was friendly."

"He thinks you're pretty." teased Remus, tugging on Patton's scarf.

"Shut up, Dukey." said Thomas, without looking round. "Okay, we've only got a few hours to do this thanks to McGrumpy Face over there, so we're going to have to split up. I'll get the rum, and that's not up for debate. Remus, you get to find as much fish as you can haul back to the boat, which means Patton gets the salt. Get back here before sunset and try not to get shot."  
He tossed them a couple of coins each and strode off, leaving Patton hovering nervously next to Remus. Together, they walked forwards. To her surprise, Remus seemed just as unsure as she felt. He'd probably been arrested here before or something, she thought with a smile.

"Why the long face?" she asked, unable to stop looking around. This wasn't the first place they'd docked since leaving the city, but it was the first place where she'd actually left the ship, and she was looking forward to finally getting some time alone. They stepped off the wooden dock into something that resembled a market. Stalls full of fabrics, fruits and fish lined the seafront, looking out to the boats moored in the port and the ocean beyond that. It wasn't busy, but they'd arrived too late in the day to get their pick of wares.

"You've got the long face, Twinkle Toes." said Remus, playfully, giving Patton a slight push before sauntering off to a fish stall.

Patton grinned, turning to work out where she was meant to find salt in this place. She still didn't get why they couldn't just soak the fish in sea water, that certainly tasted salty enough!

She wandered through the market, trying not to make eye contact with anyone. She was shorter than most of the sailors she passed, so it wasn't hard for her to go unnoticed. Still, if she didn't find something soon, she was going to have to ask for directions.

When she did find the salt, she almost completely missed it and had to take several hurried steps backwards to read the sign. 'Salt' was splattered on the wood in large, worryingly red letters. Trying not to let that put her off, she walked through the door under the sign and into the darkness beyond.

She'd always thought the sea smelled salty, but that was nothing compared to in here. The stench of salt was almost overpowering, but Patton managed to move forwards with a hand over her nose. To her surprise, it was a woman behind the dark-wood counter. She wore a skirt tied around her waist and a low cut white shirt shrouded in a scarf that wrapped around her shoulders. Her hair was long, almost as long as Patton's had been before she'd cut it, and despite much of it being bundled into a bun, it still draped down her back.

"Ahoy." said Patton, still using her deep voice. The greeting came so naturally now, the sailors were really rubbing off on her.

"Well 'ello there. What can I do you for?" It had been so long since Patton had seen another woman, she almost forgot what she was here for.

"Salt." she said, stupidly.

"Well, we got that here. How much you want?"

"As much as this'll get me." She dropped the coins Thomas had given her on the counter, still holding her other hand over her nose.

The woman gave her a look before turning and heaving two large bags of salt onto the counter. "You gotta be careful now. You know when you have salt on your ship, you are giving permission for mermaids to come aboard?"

"Mermaids? Really?" Patton didn't believe in that stuff. She was fairly certain the monsters drawn on maps were purely for decoration, but she wasn't going to turn down a sea-story if she was offered it.

"Oh yeah, they're rampant in these waters, they are."

"Can't they get all the salt they want in the water?"

"It's not the salt they want. There's a spell on mermaids, see, that they can only enter a vessel if there's salt on board. They like the taste of men." She winked. "Most of the mermaids won't cause you a problem, cos they don't have legs, see, but some of the high ranking ones can switch out their tails for legs if they really need to, so you gotta watch out for them anyway."

"Right," said Patton, only half listening, reaching out to take the salt.

"You gon be okay with that?"

"I'll be fine." Patton didn't hesitate before grabbing the bags, but regretted it afterwards. Struggling to continue her 'manly' appearance, she heaved the bags up so they were sitting on her biceps and resting on her chest. Staggering under the weight, she thanked the seller and managed to get out the door without falling over.

It took her much longer to get back to the ship than it had taken her to get to the salt place, but she still made it well before the sunset deadline. Trying to avoid the attention of the grumpy worker who was still loitering around, she edged across the gangplank and back onto the ship.

Patton smiled to herself. She couldn't believe she was happy to be back off of dry land.

Two of the deckhands took the salt from her, carrying it away to store below decks with worrying ease.

Emile wasn't in sight, so Patton wandered back over to the fishing net and took over from the young sailor currently manning the rope. He left with a nod of thanks, and she leant back against the rail, somehow feeling a lot more comfortable now the whole land deal was over. Hopefully, she would get to relax a bit before Thomas got back with the rum, and even then, they'd have to wait for Remus who was probably going on a rum search himself.

The heat was stifling, but the breeze from where she stood was enough for it to be comfortable, and she was beginning to feel sleepy. Her eyes were just about to close when the rope under her palm shook and then stiffened. Something was in the net.

"Hey, we've got something!" she shouted, already straining on the rope. Two of the other sailors ran forwards to help, but even with the three of them pulling with all their might, they couldn't lift the net. Several more deckhands joined in, half of them laughing, half of them staring at the water with wonder at what could possibly emerge. It was either very heavy, or swimming very hard against them.

"Must be an entire shoal" said Emile, coming up behind Patton and joining in the pulling, looking positively delighted. "Okay, everyone pull together. One, two, three!" The entire crew yanked on the rope, and whatever was in the water was finally hoisted into the air.

Patton fell backwards, landing hard on the deck and looking up to the net hanging above them. It was a mermaid. There was a mermaid dangling from the crossbeam. He was covered in seaweed, with his long tail still thrashing almost lazily in the net. There weren't just fins on the blue tail, but along his back and arms, and even across the edges of his face. Deep blue markings cut into his muscled stomach, outlining his ribs, and he gazed down at them with an expression of deep resentment.

"Well, looks like Patton caught us a dinner!" said a hiccuping voice from behind them. Patton turned to see Remus staggering up the gangway, a bottle of rum in his hand, gazing drunkenly at the creature still hanging above them.

"If you try to eat me." said the mermaid, his voice low and emotionless. "I will break your jaw."


	2. Foxes and Wolves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to IKEA today and I'm hyped!! What are you guys up to? Enjoy the chapter it's gonna get tense soon :)

“You’re a mermaid.” gaped Emile, his voice full of wonder. None of the crew had spoken, apart from Remus who was still chuckling at his own terrible joke. Patton still didn’t know what to think. Barley an hour a go, she had been thinking about how mermaids didn’t exist. They couldn’t exist. She didn’t believe in things like that. It wasn’t possible.

And yet here was a mermaid, alive and speaking in front of her very eyes.

“Lower him down.” said Emile, seeming to come to his senses before the rest of them. “Gently now!”

Some of the other crew members seemed to gather themselves enough to jerkily lower the mermaid down to the deck.

The creature hit the wood with a thump, and the net opened around it, but it didn’t move. It’s tail continued to sway from side to side, as if it was completely independent of the being it belonged to. The mermaid propped himself up on one hand, so he resembled a french lady in a painting, and watched them silently. There was something unsettling about his gaze, as if he could see directly through them and wanted them to know it.

“You speak English?” asked Emile, kneeling in front of the mermaid and talking as if this was something he did every other weekend.

“Aren’t you an observant one.”

Patton let loose a wild laugh. She was so excited and terrified at the same time, her emotions seemed to be having trouble pinning a reaction to anything. Some of the crew shot her scathing looks, but most of them seemed to be feeling something similar.

“What I mean is, there’s no reason you should speak it. If you were to speak a human language, I would assume it to be Spanish, seeing as that’s most common around here, but because tales of your kind had faded into myth, you haven’t been around humans enough to pick up their language.”

“No, you’re wrong. We have been around humans enough to learn many of your languages. In fact, we spend a lot of time around humans. You are just a painfully oblivious species who fail to notice things that are quite literally under your noses.”

“Okay okay, no need to be rude.” Patton had never heard Picani sounding so happy. It wasn’t like he was shocked or excited, it was more like he’d been looking forward to this meeting for a long time.

“What’s going on here?” came a loud, fed up voice from behind them. They turned to see the Captain striding back aboard, a barrel of rum under each arm. He paused as he set eyes on the mermaid, taking perhaps two seconds to register what was happening before continuing forwards.

“Someone take these below decks,” he ordered, dropping the barrels, “And the rest of you get on with whatever needs doing. Picani, come speak to me. Patton, make sure it doesn’t go anywhere.”

The crew dispersed quickly, with Remus making a beeline for the barrels of rum, chucking his own empty bottle overboard. Emile moved away to talk with Thomas and Patton was left, still sitting where he’d fallen, alone with the mermaid. It was looking directly at her now, regarding her with unimpressed eyes. She got to her feet self consciously, taking a few steps back.

“What’s your name?” she asked, wondering what kind of names mermaids had. Did they even have names?

“Logan.”

“Oh.” It sounded so normal. “Lo-gan.” She tested it on her tongue. “That’s nice. It’s funny, because you live low below the surface of the sea! I mean, I assume you live low down, maybe you live on a reef or somethin’. I don’t want to -”

“Was that an attempt at a joke?”

“I suppose so.”

“I don’t think it was successful. Where I’m from, we choose our names when we reach a certain age. I chose Logan as it linked to Aristotle's ingredient for persuasion, Logos, used to provide logic and reason. My name isn’t a joke.” 

“I didn’t mean to offend you, I just use jokes to start a conversation. It’s working. We’re having a conversation, aren’t we?”

The mermaid paused to consider this. “I suppose so. What are you called, then?”

“Patton.”

“Patton. That’s interesting. Could it be linked to another of Aristotle's ingredients for persuasion, Pathos?”

“Not that I know of, but maybe! Tell me more!”

The mermaid looked taken aback, but continued. “Pathos is certainly more obscure than Logos. Some think it has paternal attributes. Others have found links to the coming of warriors.”  
“I wouldn’t say I’m a warrior. I can barely use this thing!” She dug around in her belt and pulled out her dagger, almost dropping it with the motion. The mermaid tensed at the sight of it, but didn’t remark.

“As I was saying, I believe Pathos represents safety.”

“Oh that’s nice.” Patton grinned at the mermaid. “I like that.”

Footsteps approached, and Patton rose to her feet to greet the Captain. Thomas ignored her, moving to stand directly next to Logan. The mermaid craned his neck upwards, obviously annoyed that the human had decided to stand so close.

“What’s your name?”

“Logan. And you’re Thomas Sanders.”

Thomas tensed. Patton looked hurriedly away, pretending she hadn’t heard.

“We don’t use last names at sea. It’s bad luck.”

“Is it?” The mermaid was surely only innocently curious, but the words sounded condescending nonetheless. “That is interesting.”

“Why are you here? I’m guessing it wasn’t your plan to swim into our net.”

“You are correct. I was meant to observe from a distance, but I think I could use this mistake to my advantage.”

“You wanted to watch us?”

“I have been ordered to observe the human race. Although at this point you pose any danger, we have predicted that in time your technology may far outrank our own. We are gathering intel now, so as to protect ourselves in the future.”

“Is that- is that a threat?”

“Of course not. Take it more as a warning. If you do ever decide to come for us, we’ll be ready.”

“Sounds like a threat to me.” said Remus, appearing out of nowhere.

“No, no it’s not. It’s like what we do with fishing, we test out the waters before dropping the net.” said Patton, hurriedly.

“Thank you Patton.” said Emile, “You can go now. I’m sure you have duties to attend to.”

“I would prefer it if Patton stays.” said Logan, taking them all by surprise, especially Patton.

“You want me to stay?” She asked, uncertainly. Who was she meant to listen to? Emile outranked her but Logan was, well, a mermaid! Was she seriously about to refuse?

“You seem to think in a more understandable way than your counterparts. I would appreciate it if you remained, so as to cut through the nonsense, if you understand my meaning.”

“That sounded like an insult.” snapped Thomas, obviously annoyed at Logan’s focus on Patton. “And I don’t take kindly to being insulted on my own ship. I’m Captain here. Patton, Remus, go find something to do, you’re not needed.”

Patton turned to go, but managed to overhear Logan’s answering remark.

“You can recognise an insult. Interesting.”

“There’s a mermaid on the deck.” said Patton out loud to herself as soon as they’d escaped the earshot of Thomas.

“I can’t believe sexy over there decided you were the smart one.”

“Me neither - wait, did you just call the mermaid sexy?”

“Did you see those muscles?”

“I can’t believe you were looking at his muscles. Did you fail to realise that he had a giant blue fish tale!”

“You can’t blame a guy for knowing where to look.”

“Watch me, Dukey.”

Remus let out a long, untuned whistle before sidling off. The rest of the crew were already back at work, many of them casting nervous looks at Patton, wondering what the creature above them might have told her.

If she was honest with herself, she wasn’t sure what to make of her experience with the mermaid. It hadn’t been what she would have expected a meeting with a mythical creature to be like, in hindsight. She would have thought it would be more complex descriptions of unimaginable lands and promises of great riches, not discussing some greek philosopher and the meanings behind their own names. Still, she was flattered that the mermaid seemed to have taken a liking to her.

Logan remained on the deck until well after sunset, when they had departed from the dock and were back on their way towards the cargo that they were now only a week away from collecting. Thomas spent most of the day talking with him, with Emile occasionally leaving the discussion to ensure they stayed on course. The crew got on with their jobs, but none of them could ignore the fact that they were sharing the boat with a mermaid. Patton spent most of the evening swabbing the deck, and then it was her job to make something edible for dinner. She’d never had to cook before boarding the ship, but it was a skill she was happy to practice, happier than most of the other sailors anyway.

“This is stringy.” complained Remus when she handed him his bowl.

“That’s because I put strings in it.” said Patton, smiling innocently.

“I’ll put strings in you!”

“That really wasn’t one of your best.” She continued round the ship, ladling the soupy-stewie dish into everyone’s bowls and ignoring the complaints over the size of the portions. It wasn’t her fault that they’d caught a mermaid instead of food.

She hesitated as her eyes set on Thomas, Emile and Logan, wondering if it would be appropriate to take their food over to them or if she should leave it below decks and let them have it cold. In the end, she decided she’d rather interrupt them and glean a snippet of conversation than leave them to it.

“Anyone hungry?”

“Not now, Patton.” snapped Thomas, but Emile stepped eagerly forwards.

“I’m famished.” he unhooked his bowl from his belt and allowed Patton to ladle out whatever it was she’d managed to cook.

“Cap’in?”

Thomas stood stubbornly for a moment, running a hand through his hair and looking out to sea, before nodding and extending his own bowl.

“And, erm, Logan?” offered Patton, unsure what the mermaid ate, if they did eat that was.

“Thank you Patton, I would like some.” The acceptance wasn’t impolite, but there was still something reserved about it, as if the mermaid was annoyed about having to eat human food.

Before she offered the food to the mermaid, however, Patton gave a sideways glance at Thomas, who bit his lip before slowly nodding. There wasn’t much left in Patton’s pot, so she placed the whole thing on the deck in front of the mermaid and offered him her spoon. Logan hoisted himself up so he was resting on one hand, and Patton forced herself not to think of what Remus had said about his muscles as his biceps strained with the moment. One glance confirmed that the Duke was watching the whole interaction, a grin smeared across his face.

With a slight groan, Logan picked up the spoon and began to eat the soup. His face contorted after a few mouthfuls, but Patton didn’t know whether this was because of the taste or because of the strain of balancing on one arm. It struck her that he was in a very vulnerable position, without legs, with his hands so preoccupied, it wouldn’t take much to overpower him. She glanced nervously at Thomas, but the Captain was silently watching Logan eat without moving.

She tipped up the pot so the mermaid could get to the last of the stew before getting to her feet.

“Thank you Patton.” said Logan, lowering himself back onto both arms and breathing a sigh of relief. He looked between Emile and Thomas, nodding as if in farewell. “I think I have all I need. Thank you for your time.” And with that, he somehow managed to leap into the air and dive over the railing into the ocean, vanishing from view.

As one, the crew left whatever job they had been busying themselves with and ran to the railings, leaning over to try and catch a glimpse of the vanished mermaid. They were greeted by nothing but black, foaming water. Logan was gone.

Patton felt a light punch on her shoulder and turned to see Remus. The Duke looked positively haunting. His eyes were wide and staring, looking almost lustfully between Patton and the sea. There were wet flecks around his mouth that she hoped was sea spray, but very much doubted was. He’d always been crazy, but he’d never looked so crazy.

“Why’d you let him go?” he asked, leering forwards. “I was enjoying watching that.”

“Shut up and sober up, Remus.” said Thomas, his arms crossed as he watched over the crew resuming their work. “Get to the crows nest and stay there.”

“Captain, I really think I’d better-”

“You’ve already had too much, and you know it. God knows what you found in that port. Get in the crows nest and don’t come down until I send someone to take over from you. Emile, go and check the trajectory. Patton, come with me.”

He walked off without looking back. Patton trailed after him, wondering whether she was in trouble. Surly, the Captain couldn’t blame her for Logan getting away. What was she meant to have done, grabbed his tail and held on for dear life?

They walked into his office, where the Captain took his seat behind the desk and Patton hovered nervously by the door, unwilling to enter any further than she needed to. Punishments on board boats were harsh, so as to keep up discipline, and if she was flogged there were very high chances that her boyish rouse would be thrown to the sharks.

“Sir, I swear I didn’t help the mermaid-”

“Forget the mermaid. He told us something that we need to act on, now. These waters are meant to be Pirate free, but apparently that’s a hoax spread by the pirates themselves. These waters are full of them, and this ship isn’t combat ready. I need you to spend the night preparing the cannons and making sure the weaponry is ready for use at a moment's notice.”

“But, sir, tonight? Why me?”

“Firstly, because you’re small and insignificant enough that no one will notice. I don’t want to scare the crew. Pirates have a scary rep, but they’re just leeches with guns. Totally harmless if you can keep a straight head.” Patton gulped. That certainly didn’t correlate with what she’d heard about pirates, but that almost proved the Captain’s point. Maybe he was right. Hopefully.  
“Secondly, it doesn’t matter if you’re tired when the fight comes, you won’t be much good in one anyway.”

Patton tried not to look hurt, but she doubted she was very successful. She’d tried so hard to get stronger, to complete every job put to her, but even as a man she was still the little girl. Thomas must have seen something of this in her face, because he softened with a sigh.

“I didn’t mean that in a bad way, Pat. You’re very useful, but not in a big brutish way. Most of the sailors, they’re wolves. They’ve got big teeth and they know how to use them. You’re a fox. You’ve got smaller claws, but you are quicker and smarter. I’m just making use of that. I trust you will keep this to yourself and you’ll get us ready for any attacks that might occur. Okay?”

“Okay sir.” Patton stood to attention before turning to get started on the mammoth task ahead of her. Pirates. Great.


	3. Red

As the sun rose the next day, Patton doubted she’d ever felt more exhausted. She’d spent the night heaving cannon balls across the ship and hooking the cannons themselves into place along the portholes. It was nothing she hadn’t done before, they’d practised the process a few times before leaving New York and had run through the routine when reports returned of pirate sightings, but their merchant boat hadn’t seen combat yet, at least not on this voyage. It was the first time she’d done this without a crew, and the word took its toll.

After ensuring the cannons were ready to fire at a moment's notice, she began sorting the weapons store. Before she got her hands on it, it was simply a cupboard of mismatched rifles, empty pistols, blunt cutlasses and varying sizes of daggers. Through the morning, as the sun rose over their drifting ship, Patton sharpened every one of those swords, made sure every gun was ready for use and that the weapons store itself was neat enough that everyone could get what they needed in a panic.

Remus had fallen asleep in the crows nest, so Patton took to checking the surrounding waters every few hours, lighting a lantern and pacing the deck, staring off into the distance. She knew it probably wasn’t necessary, the likelihood of running into pirates was low, in all of the seven seas, but her anxiety wouldn’t let her rest. Most pirates attacked at night. If they were coming for them, she would be the only warning.

By the time the rest of the crew were stirring, she was so tired she could barely remember her own name. The events of the previous day had blurred with the dreams she’d sunk into while she had worked, until she couldn’t for the life of her remember what was real and what was a product of her bleary brain. She could remember seeing a mermaid, which seemed unlikely, but she could also remember the mermaid rising up on his beautiful tail to kiss her, which seemed even more unlikely.

Her lips had cracked in the night, and even now when she was slumped against the supplies in the hull of the ship, enjoying a few minutes of peace, she struggled to catch her breath. She just wanted to sleep-

“Wake up, Patton.”

Her eyes snapped open to find Thomas standing over her. She scrambled to her feet, unsure how much time had passed or if she was in trouble. Were there pirates here already? She swayed where she stood, trying to stop the rapid motions of her thoughts before they slammed into something and fell apart.

“Calm down, Pat. You did a good job.”

“Yeah?” She could barely register his words.

“Yeah, I think we’re pretty much ready. I have no idea how likely we are to come under attack, but hey, if a mermaid tells you you’re in danger, you listen, right?” So the mermaid did actually happen. Good to know. The kissing part was probably the made-up bit, then.

“Go take a rest now, you’re relieved of your duties for the day. I’ll tell the others you felt sick. Thanks for doing this, Pat.”

“That’s okay Sir.” She slurred, still barely able to open her eyes. As the Captain returned to the deck, she wandered through the hull of the ship to where the crew slept. Most of them had hammocks, but she had been given a small, wooden box instead. Curling tight onto herself, she pulled the sheet she called a blanket up to her shoulders and promptly fell back to sleep.

* * *

Patton awoke to the sound of heavy breathing. Her head was much clearer now, with the exhaustion of the previous night having been partially staved off by the day of sleep. She knew she should stay where she was, that if she got up now she was at risk of becoming completely nocturnal, but where was the fun in that?

Doing her best not to knock Emile’s hammock above her, she crawled out of her little box and stood up straight. Most of the crew were there, sleeping. Thomas was in his own quarters, of course, and Remus was probably still in the crow’s nest. She crept out of the hull and onto the deck, casting a glance upwards. The night before, the sky had been starless, with clouds covering anything worth seeing. Tonight, however, it was clear. Stars glistened in their millions, unlike anything Patton had seen back home in New York. A sliver of moon had appeared, its reflection glowing on the churning surface of the sea.

Surprisingly, the Duke was still awake. He grinned down at her as she emerged, leaning backwards against the mast and crossing his arms, as if he’d seen her doing something she shouldn’t have been. Unwilling to do anything under his watch, she ducked back below and continued to wander aimlessly.

She found herself back in front of the weapons storage. Unsure what she was doing here, she pulled out a cutlass and examined it. The blade was sharp, thanks to her, but it was so big she doubted she could swing it with anything like the weight it demanded. Something smaller than. The next cutlass she picked out was more her speed. It was much lighter, with a glinting curved blade and a handle that fitted her grip. If she was going to learn to fight, this was the weapon for her.

She took a deep breath. If they were at risk from pirates, she didn’t want to be some useless fox waiting for the action to end. There was no reason she couldn’t be small and smart and quick, and not defend herself at the same time.

With a fluid motion, she spun round, brandishing the cutlass at an imaginary enemy. The weapon flew out of her hand, clattering to the wooden floor. Gritting her teeth, she stood frozen, waiting for sounds of movement. None came. Gingerly, she picked up the cutlass and tried again.

Through the night, she practised. Swiping the sword through the air, practising lunging with it, and defending. She might not be a wolf yet, but this fox was learning to use its claws.

* * *

“You still look tired.” remarked Thomas. Patton had spent the morning swabbing the deck, but used the Captain’s presence as a chance to stop and lean against her mop.

“I woke up early this morning. Don’t worry, Cap’in. I’ll be right as rain before long. You know, I’ve always wondered, what’s so right about rain? I mean, rain makes me pretty sad.”

“Well,” the Captain didn’t normally partake in Patton’s musing, but the question appeared to intrigue him. “Without rain, they’d be no agriculture. Rain is right because it gives us food.”

Patton blinked, surprised. The argument was much more thought through than anything she’d been expecting. Thomas was a sailor, what was he doing with vocabulary like that?

“I guess so, Cap’in.” she paused, unsure of how to go on, but the question had been bugging her all day. “Sir, are we going to do anything about the fact there was a mermaid aboard the ship?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, well, it was a mermaid. No one really seems too bothered. Like, are we meant to tell people when a great mythical creature turns out to be real? Or do we just pretend it never happened?”

Thomas smiled and sighed. “Well, first of all, what difference does it make? They’re not exactly going to be helpful to us, not based on Logan’s attitude anyway. They’re no threat; he clarified that. They’re existence has no impact. Secondly, who’s gonna believe us? We’re a bunch of sailors. Most of us don’t ‘ave family, and even less of an education. Anyone we will tell will think we were just drunk or whatever. We’ll sound like a bunch of Remuses. There’s no point tarnishing our reputation if we’re not going to get anything out of it. Hell, if I went around shouting how we saw a mermaid, I’d never get another job! Neither would you, kid. So, we do nothing. You know mermaids exist. Think of that as a reward enough.”

“Oh, I wasn’t looking for a reward-”

“Captain.” Remus called down, still stuck high above them. “I think you should have a look at this.”

“What is it?” shouted up Thomas, instantly stiffening, scanning the ocean around them. Patton did the same, but she couldn’t see anything. They moved to the railing, and Emile joined them, all of them looking in the direction Remus had been pointing.

The Captain pulled out his spyglass and grimaced, letting out a long sigh.

“It’s a ship.” he said, still looking through the glass. Patton squinted in the same direction and managed to make out a black dot on the horizon. Whatever it was, it was small, and a long way away. If they moved now, they could probably outrun it.

“Shall I give the order to change course?” asked Emile, hesitantly.

“Dr Picani.” Thomas said, slowly. There was something new in his voice, something small and helpless. “It’s got red sails.”

“Red sails? But there’s only one ship I know of with red sails-”

“It’s the Dragon Witch.”

Patton felt the blood drain from her face. She’d heard of the Dragon Witch. Everyone at sea had. Stories were told about it as if it was a legend, but there it was, as real as the day and obviously making for them, the bloody sails already visible. You couldn’t outrun the Dragon Witch. According to the stories, the myths, it was sailed by the most fearsome pirates in the world. The most ruthless, the most bloodthirsty, they had formed a crew and the Dragon Witch was the offspring. It was Captained by the Prince. Apparently, he never left the ship. He had no need to. He never raised his weapon, he never got his hands dirty. He just relaxed into his riches and let the world run itself ragged under his feet.

“We’re not going to escape them. Get the men ready for battle. Every man has a gun and a cutlass. Patton, get in the escape boat and get back to that port.”

“What?”

“We need someone to testify to our deaths. I condemn you to survive.”

“No, sir, let me fight! I can help. You can’t make me leave.” She didn’t know why she was arguing, there was nothing for her here to stay for, but the sailor inside her had awoken. She wasn’t going to let the rest of the crew die while she rowed to safety.

“Get in that boat, sailor, or I’ll throw you overboard myself.”

“Are we running?” asked Remus, dropping down from the rigging above them, having missed most of the conversation and Emile’s order to prepare for the battle ahead.

“No, we’re fighting.”

“We’re fighting the Dragon Witch? Have you, oh wise Captain, forgotten the fact that that ship is under the control of Prince Roman? We might as well be sailing to the gallows with the rope already round our necks.”

“Get in position, Duke.”

Remus actually laughed. “No thank you, Captain. If anyone needs me, I’ll be off kissing the rum goodbye.”

Thomas took a deep breath and strode off. It seemed it was only Patton who saw Remus break into a run halfway across the deck and dive overboard.

The boat had exploded into chaos. None of the crew questioned why the cannons were already in position, but got into formation quickly as Thomas and Emile shouted orders. Everyone was armed, everyone was ready, but Patton doubted any of them really stood a chance. She still had her own small cutlass tucked away in her belt, but she’d had one night's practise. Someone had once told her that a novice was sometimes more dangerous than a practised swordsman because their moves were wild and unpredictable, but she wasn’t in the mood to find out.

If she wanted to keep her allegiance to Thomas, she should have been already lowering the rowing boat and making her way to safety, maybe even picking up Remus along the way. But something told her to stay, to fight, to help these men who had picked her off the streets of New York and saved her from whatever life she would have succumbed to otherwise.

Moving fast and keeping low, she ran to the centre mast and began to climb the rope ladder that dangled from the crows nest. The climbing was slow, but adrenaline and pure motivation drove her onward. She’d never been to the crows nest before; she was too small to be of any proper use and she’d never been keen on heights anyway.

When she reached the railed platform, she took another glance towards the approaching boat. It was much closer now. So close, she could see figures moving around aboard the deck. If she had any more time, she could have probably picked out their expressions. How had the ship gone from a speck on the horizon to that so quickly? Not pausing to ponder, she kept climbing. There was no ladder now, so she hugged the mast with her legs and scrambled her way up it, using the ropes either side for grips and doing her utmost not to look down.

When she reached the cross beam, where the sails hung limp, she stopped. If someone was to come after her, they’d have to take their time. She’d see them coming. She knew it was cowardly, but she just wasn’t strong enough to help load the cannons or be any good in hand to hand combat. As she saw it, the only way she could be useful was a surprise attack, from above.

The deck below her had fallen still. Everyone was in their position. For a brief moment, she scanned the sea for a sight of Remus, but found none. Worry bit at her; the Duke had been the only one of the sailors to pay her any heed, even if their conversations hadn’t been exactly pleasant. But she didn’t have time to go and look for him. She needed to focus.

The Dragon Witch was probably close enough to fire now. The two ships circled each other from a distance, getting closer with either ring they made around each other. Neither side began the fight. It was as if neither was really sure of how to begin, but that wasn’t true. The pirates knew exactly how and when to begin. It was Thomas’ crew that were in trouble.

Patton felt herself sway and leaned backwards against the mast. It only continued for a few metres above her; she had nowhere higher to go, but at least she had something to cling to. It wasn’t the time to be scared of heights. She knew it wasn’t as easy as that, it never would be, but she repeated the phrase to herself regardless. It wasn’t the time to be scared. She’d spent weeks building up her strength, her speed, her mind. She was faster than any sailor on this boat; she could escape if she needed to. This wasn’t going to be the end, not for her. She was going to make it. This wasn’t the time to be scared.

The two boats pulled alongside each other. Thomas and Emile stood alone on the deck of the Crofter. If it had been up to Patton, she would have fired then and there. She wouldn’t have given the pirates a chance to attack or to defend. This boat was infamous; she doubted a single vessel had escaped it before. Now could have been their chance. Why was Thomas stalling?

The deck of the Dragon Witch was empty. There was no sign of the fearsome, fear striking crew, nor the Captain who commanded them. The Prince. It was a name spoken in hushed tones, felt with the same fear as death and darkness. She’d heard it long before she’d ever considered work at sea. She’d heard it even before she’d found herself on the streets. And now she was about to come face to face with the man behind the name. If she survived long enough, that was.

The silence was deafening. No one was moving. No one knew what to expect or when to expect it. The Captain stood on the desk, facing the pirate’s boat, his hand waiting on the handle of his sword. He was going to fight valiantly, to the end if need be. He had been a good Captain. Patton was lucky to have found him.

Emile stood a distance behind him, a pistol gripped in each hand, glancing around the deck as if he expected the pirates to come from behind him. The rest of the crew were below the deck, readying to fire, waiting for the order. Tension rose, and continued to rise, until Patton was shaking where she stood, her body frozen in place and yet screaming at her to move. Something needed to happen.

Grappling hooks flew through the air. There was no sign of who had thrown them, but each one of them struck their mark, landing on the railings of the Crofter, many of them plunging through the wood of the hull to get their hold. Thomas drew his sword, but the pirates didn’t give them a moment to hesitate. They were already travelling along the ropes stretched taut between the two boats, appearing from the side of the Dragon Witch as if by magic, more and more emerging by the moment. Within seconds, they had boarded the Crofter. It began.


	4. Glasses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SWORD FIGHT SWORD FIGHT SWORD FIGHT

The pirates swarmed the deck, screaming war cries no one would hear. Thomas was swarmed almost instantly, Emile a moment later. Too late, the cannons began firing. The Dragon Witch retaliated immediately, the cannon balls blasting through the Crofter, until the very idea that the boat would stay afloat was laughable. There was no hope. The pirate’s boat was firing at such a rate it would be impossible to beat them.

Giving up on the cannons,the crew emerged from the hull into the midst of the battle, thrown off and confused. Patton stood helpless at her vantage point, watching from above, wishing she could do something, anything.

Thomas was fighting four of the pirates at once. She had never seen him fight, other than showing the other sailors a trick or too, but watching him now she could see why he was a renown Captain. With a sword in each hand, he slashed and lunged constantly, not giving the pirates a chance to attack, forcing all four of them to defend. He had a beautiful style; effortlessly imposing his will on the pirates around him, even if they all blocked him easily. He wasn’t trying to hurt them, he was just trying to stay alive for as long as possible. Prolonging the inevitable just in case there was a chance help was on its way. He kept fighting because Captain Thomas would never surrender, because this would be what was left of him; the tale of how he fought till the end and stayed with his men.

Red glinted on his chin. One of the soldiers had managed to bypass his swords and cut him. It wasn’t deep, it wouldn’t hinder him in any way, but it still worked as an announcement. He couldn’t keep this up, and they all knew it. They’d just proved it. Patton realised the pirates weren’t even trying to attack; they didn’t need to. At this rate, he was going to tire himself out, saving them the effort of a worthwhile fight. Even as she watched, Thomas’ blows were becoming sloppy, his lunges less powerful, his defences sluggish. He kept up his onslaught of attacks, but even from so high above him, Patton could see any remaining hope leaking out of his fighting.

Seeming to come to an unspoken agreement, the pirates suddenly changed tactics, moving as one. They all sheaved their weapons and leapt at Thomas with their bare hands. Two of them disarmed him, while a third struck a blow to the side of his head. It all happened too quickly for Patton to keep track of, for Thomas to have any time to respond, but by the time it was over, his body was limp on the deck. Unconscious. They hadn’t even granted him a warrior's death. Instead, he was to die a captive. Patton raised a hand to her temple in a salute as her Captain was dragged from his ship.

Emile didn’t last any longer. Up until Thomas’ defeat, he’d been backed against the mizzenmast, with a pistol in each hang, frantically waving the weapons at the oncoming pirates, who seemed more amused by his attempts to defend himself than actually wary of the guns. As the Captain went down, they leapt at the doctor too, unarming and knocking him out in the exact same way, before hauling his body back to their own ship.

Not everyone was so lucky. By now, the deck was littered with corpses. The battle was nearly over. With a sad little triumph, she managed to pick out some black or red clad bodies amongst the white clothed sailors, but it didn’t make a difference. It looked like the whole crew had been slaughtered, save for Thomas and Emile, and the entire fight had lasted, what, ten minutes? Fifteen at a push? The pirates were already making their way back to the Dragon Witch, laughing, shouldering each other in friendly arguments, stepping over the corpses of the people who had taken in Patton, the people who tried to protect her. She saw one of them lick the blood off his sword, and turned away, dizziness rising, sickness clawing at her throat.

It was only when she broke eye contact with the desolate scene below her that she first got the feeling that she wasn’t alone. She froze in place, her eyes scanning the ship below her, trying to work out if she had been spotted or if she was just reeling from the past excitement.

“Down here, honey.” said a voice, far too close.

Patton looked down into the crows nest below her and locked eyes with a pirate, leaning against the railings, smirking up at her. How long had he been there for? How had he climbed up so quickly? Half the point of her coming up here was that she could get a warning of any attacks. That had been thrown out the window. She forced herself to focus.

He was as scruffy as the rest of the pirates, but there was something clean cut about his appearance too. His long hair was pulled back in a messy bun, his eyes hidden beneath darkened glasses. Over a puffy white shirt he wore a sleeveless leather jacket, and a bag over his shoulder that somehow didn’t deduct from his wind-swept, romantic appearance.

That was all Patton could glean before the Pirate leapt into the air, landing neatly on the beam metres in front of her. It was only then that she noticed his silver leg, the end of it cutting into the wood, but she was more astonished by the height that this man had just jumped. It was - impossible. No one human could possibly jump that high, move that effortlessly, but somehow he managed it.

Leaning against the mast, he slowly looked Patton up and down, taking in the little cutlass shaking in her hand. The smirk didn’t vanish from his lips. In any other situation, he would have seemed friendly. Now, that look struck terror down to Patton’s bones.

Slowly, he drew his own blade. A rapier, probably longer than Patton was tall, it’s silver blade sparkling in the light reflected off the ocean. He didn’t attack, though. He simply lent against the sword, as if it was a cane and they were meeting outside a fancy restaurant for a nice meal.

“I’m Remy.” he said, his voice light, airy. Patton forced herself to focus on his body, the movements of his sword, the way he kept tapping it gently against his metal leg. “And you are?”

She wasn’t going to be lulled into a conversation. There were bodies on the deck below them; this man had probably added to the number of the dead. Not giving him a second to prepare, trying not to let a single thought show on her face, she lunged forwards with her cutlass, sweeping it towards his midriff.

Effortlessly, almost lazily, the pirate blocked her. He didn’t attack back, even as Patton leapt away and crouched low, protecting her own stomach and chest. He just grinned at her, inviting her to continue the fight, teasing her with his own life.

Again, she struck, trying not to exhaust herself. This time, she fainted towards his midriff but switched at the last minute and lunged towards his good leg. It worked - sort of. He moved to parry the feint, and was forced to step back to avoid her true strike, but the smile remained plastered to his face. It was infuriating.

“Fight me.” she spat, resuming her crouching position, keeping her eyes on the pirate’s body, not letting her guard down even for a moment.

He raised his sword to his chin, cocking his head to one side, as if considering her request. It hadn’t been a request. It had been an order, and she tried to convey this with her eyes.

“If you insist.”

Without warning, he lunged forwards, one hand going out behind him for balance, the over driving his blade directly for her exposed neck. She twisted on the spot, managing to avoid his blade while keeping her feet on the wood. A drop from his height would be lethal, but so would a strike from that rapier. It seemed she had a choice of death, and she chose to fight.

Patton swung her cutlass, not caring about balance, not caring about anything but the pirate in front of her. The smile was beginning to slip from his lips. He was still smirking, but there was less amusement there and more genuine pleasure that he had finally met someone who knew how to use a sword. Patton wasn’t sure what to make of that. She’d had one night's practise. Her confident charade was going to fall to pieces any moment, and that’s be it.

But the fight continued. They got into a rhythm. She struck at some part of him that he left open, and he would parry the blow of back away before immediately retorting with a swipe of his own, directed at her throat or her chest or her stomach, and she would meet his sword every time, managing to shift her sword’s position when he fainted and leaping out of the way if he tried anything fancy, which he did. Within minutes, it was clear that this man knew how to use a sword.

Every so often, they had to twist around each other so as to continue the fight, when they got too close to each other or to the end of the beam. Every time this happened, Patton thought she was going to die. They were close when it happened, closer than anyone should be in a sword fight, closer than she’d been to anyone since she’d cut her hair. Remy would use these moments to attack, every time, sweeping his great, elegant sword towards whatever part of her he could reach. Every time, she managed to twist or jump or duck out of the way, somehow managing to survive on luck alone, not knowing when her luck was going to run out.

With one glance, she realised they had a crowd. The Crofter was sinking fast beneath them, most of the deck already lost beneath the surface of the sea, but the deck of the Dragon Witch was full of pirates, all of them looking up at them. She didn’t have time to gauge their expressions, but she didn’t like the attention nonetheless. Her slaughter would have an audience. But she couldn’t focus on that. Stay alive now, worry later.

“You’ve got a spunk kid, I’ll give you that.” said the pirate. His voice had lowered, his smirking lips had fallen open in concentration. Patton had no idea what to think of his statement. Was he - impressed? She had no idea how much time had passed. It could have been minutes, it could have been an hour. All she knew was that this dance couldn’t go on forever. That was what it had turned into; a dance. One lunged, one defended, and then they swapped. It was exhilarating. It was almost fun. It wasn’t as if she had given up trying to attack the pirate; with every strike, she aimed for a new spot, attempted to bypass Remy’s blocks, outsmart his darkened eyes, but every time he managed to stop her. And she did the same to him. He was obviously fighting to his full strength now, there were no more lazy sweeps or overconfident jabs. He swung and sliced at her with every bit of conviction she felt, and still the fight stayed in motion. What did that mean? That they were - equals?

One thing was for sure: she was never going to win if this continued. Remy was stronger, more experienced. She would tire faster. That was what it had come down to.

Without taking a moment to reconsider, she leapt from the beam, landing in a crouch in the crows nest and automatically swiping towards where Remy jumped after her. Surprising even herself, she caught him off guard and nicked his sleeve. Red stained the white. How had she, a little girl snuck on a merchant ship, drawn first blood in a battle against a pirate?

“Who the hell taught you?” panted Remy, revealing for the first time how tired he felt. Patton would have been triumphant if she hadn’t been feeling just as exhausted.

“I did.” Again, she struck, and his defence was slower, his metal leg going back to parry the blow. She didn’t care whether he was shocked or exhausted. It didn’t matter. This was her opportunity. She brought her cutlass down with new strength, slicing through the air, ready to come into contact with flesh.

She was met with pure, unwavering force. Remy’s rapier climbed down her blade and bit her hand. Before she realised what was happening, she had dropped her sword and leapt back out of instinct along. The pirate smirked at her again. The weary movements, the panting, it had all been an act. He was playing her like a homemade drum, and she was stumbling along in his wake.

With a flick of his rapier, he tossed her cutlass out of the crows nest and to the ocean climbing the mast below just as she made a lunge for it, before instantly bringing his sword up towards her. She lept upwards, grabbing hold of the beam they’d been fighting on previously and tucking in her legs so the sword swept harmlessly through the air beneath her. She scrambled back onto the beam and Remy was instantly there in front of her, as if he’d been waiting. There was no escape.

She backed away slowly, keeping her eyes on him, weaponless and helpless. With a light chuckle, he took two strides forwards, reaching out to her with his empty hands and pulling her so her back was against his chest, holding his sword to her throat.

“I have to admit, that was the most fun I’d had in a long time.” he murmured in her ear, letting the sword rest against her skin.

Gulping, she gritted her teeth. “Then why let it end?” Before he had time to process her response, she sent a leg flying back between his legs and into his groin. Hard. The sword vanished from her throat, and she ran, but there was nowhere to go. She could try climbing back to the deck, but an army of pirates waited for her. She’d prefer to take her chances with just one.

To her surprise, Remy seemed to have already recovered from the nut attack. His glasses were askew now, his lips pressed in a thin line. In hindsight, Patton thought she preferred it when he was smirking.

What was she going to do? She had no sword, no escape and no chance of help. Remy knew it. The pirates below her knew it. And they wanted to savour their victory.

“How long have you been training?” he asked, sounding genuinely curious. Patton was pretty sure this was a real question, not some kind of trick, but it wasn’t a chance she was going to take. She stayed stubbornly silent, ready to move at a moment's notice.

“Who taught you? The Captain? A member of the crew?” 

“I’ve already answered that.” she said, softly, not letting herself get caught up in the conversation. “I did.”

“You’re too good to be self-taught.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“If you keep refusing to answer, I can make you talk.”

“I’d like to see you try.”

Without missing a beat, the pirate’s hands were on her again, this time pushing. She scrambled to find purchase as Remy dangled her off the edge of the beam. Eventually, she managed to position herself so she was braced against the beam with her feet, hanging by one arm from Remy’s stone grip.

“Surrender.” It was an order.

“What’s the point? I’m going to die either way.” Her voice was as unsteady as her thoughts, but still she managed to be defiant. 

“No, you’re either going to plunge into the deck of a sinking ship where you’ll be set upon by pirates, or you’re going to come with me to my ship and I’m going to let my Captain have a good look at you. He likes meeting interesting people, and you certainly fit under that category, kid.”

“Maybe I’d rather die than meet your Captain.”

“Oh, but that would make the Prince so sad. Come on, honey. Make up your mind.” As if to emphasise the threat waiting below, the pirate let go of Patton’s hand. For a moment, Patton was falling, but before she could even move an inch Remy had grabbed her other wrist. The pirate was quicker than anything she had ever seen before.

Adrenaline pounded through her. Her eyes had gone wide, her whole body tense with the danger of the situation. The sea frothed around them, barring help, barring escape. Remy’s grip was loosening on her wrist, on purpose, of course. In that split second, she decided she’d face whatever horrors awaited on the Dragon Witch. She could do it. And maybe, just maybe, she could escape.

“Okay.” She breathed, hating herself for her cowardice. “I surrender.” The words were sour on her tongue.

Remy smiled. He pulled her back up and made sure she had regained her balance on the beam before letting her go. Looking out across at his own boat, he took off his glasses, revealing dark eyes. Like a snap, his gaze fixed on Patton again. There was pure, predatory hunger there. All the warning she got was a wink. Then, the hilt of Remy’s rapier connected with the side of her head, and everything went black.


	5. The Prince

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Okay, this villain is meant to be scary and violent. Sexy villain comes later!  
> Also me: *writes this*
> 
> Slight warning, Roman is a real meanie so Princey Stans be prepared, and there is a minor character death but it's not described in detail.

Gradually, Patton began to feel things. She was in a small space; she could tell that much. On her left was something cold and wet, and on her right was something warm, that she lent towards instinctively. Her sense of smell came next. Salt, from the sea. The thick, grimy stench of rum. Unshowered bodies. Then hearing. Voices, muffled, most of them, and breathing, much closer. She counted four people breathing around her, but she wasn’t quite awake enough to consider what that meant. Something was pulled tight across her front and her arms were pinned to her sides; she couldn't move.

Her head was pounding. The pain was coming from the right and sticking a knife straight through to the left. The ceaseless throbbing of it was enough to keep her eyes closed, her teeth gritted, waiting for the remainder of her senses to return. What had happened? Had she fallen overboard? Had Remus done something? Remus. She remembered him jumping from the ship, why had he done that? Had Thomas been angry at him? Thomas. She remembered Thomas’ body slumped on the deck. Something bad had happened, really bad.

With a jolt, she realised her cutlass was missing from her belt. She’d only had it for a day, but the absence of it was jarringly noticeable. What had happened? She’d certainly used the sword, she could remember swinging it through the air, high up above the sinking ship, towards- towards- the pirate.

Her eyes snapped open.

The deck of the pirate ship came into focus before her. She was aboard the Dragon Witch. Everything hit her at once. Blurring her vision, her head swayed in its attempt to take it all in. Patton took a deep breath and told herself to slow down. One thing at a time.

The wood was painted in thick black paint giving it a grimy appearance, but the ship was immaculate. Barrels were tied down neatly, the ropes hung taught in intricate, well crafted knots and every railing was carved with elegant designs. Somehow, the beauty of the ship made it so much more terrifying, like a monster smiling kindly, tempting her closer.

The deck was swarmed with men. Many of them she recognised from wanted posters back in New York; they truly were the most feared pirates in the world. They all wore either black or red, matching the ship and its infamous sails. Their clothes were some of the most beautiful Patton had ever seen, even before she washed up on the streets. Long, patterned tailcoats and beautiful tight-fitting shirts. It was strange seeing these clothes, normally saved for the highest of nobleman, married to the grime of sea life. Many of them had ripped off their sleeves or cut their trousers short, and it was clear the clothes hadn’t been washed in months. Several still carried blood stains.

Their boat was rich in conversation and life, but it also had an uncanny air of stillness about it. Some of the pirates busied themselves running the ship, scrubbing the deck or rearranging the sails, but most of them were just standing around, talking, laughing, shooting amused looks towards where Patton stood.

There was rope wrapped around her waist, tying her to the mast in the centre of the ship, as if someone had wanted to shove her defeat on display. She twisted her neck to try and work out who was pressed either side of her. Emile was on her right. He looked unharmed apart from some scratches on his face. His broken glasses still sat crooked on his nose.

“Dr Picani.” she croaked, starting to wonder how long she’d been unconscious for.

“Patton? You’re awake! Are you okay?” He sounded positively chipper. It almost made her laugh.

“Finally.” growled a voice to her right. She turned Remus trussed up next to her. “You might stop leaning on my shoulder now.”

“Didn’t you jump-”

“They fished me out.” He pulled against his ropes restlessly, his face the mirror of a thundercloud. The side of Remus that was pressed up against her was soaking; she couldn’t have been asleep for that long if the Duke was still wet.

“Are you okay, Pat?” came a voice. The sound of it sent a shudder of relief through Patton. They still had their Captain with them. If they had a chance of escaping, it was with Thomas. He sounded like he was on the other side of Picani, not far away but just out of sight.

“Yeah, a little woozy but I’ll be fine. I get we’re in a bit of a pickle, heh?” she paused, wondering whether it was the time for jokes. She decided there probably wouldn’t be a better time. “A sea pickle!”

There was a collective groan from the others. She couldn’t help but smile.

“Is it just us four then?”

“Five.” came a vaguely familiar voice.

“Who’s that?”

“Elliot. I was in the next bunk over on the Crofter.”

The name did stir a memory. Elliot had been young, maybe even younger than she was, but strong and good at sailing. She’d always assumed he’d grown up on the seas, he was a natural at using the weather to their advantage and keeping the sailing smooth no matter the size of the waves. As far as she could remember, they’d never had a conversation.

“Yeah, hey, are you okay?”

“I’ve been better, not going to lie. Still alive, I guess.”

“How long’s it been?”

“About a day.” said Emile, “We’re not quite sure, we all woke up at different times, apart from Remus who was too drunk when everything happened to remember much. No one’s spoken to us, no one’s given us food or water or anything.”

“Do you think they’re planning to starve us?” said Remus, evilly, sounding exhilarated at the very thought. Patton tried not to laugh. She was never going to understand the Duke.

“If we’re going to die from lack of sustenance, it will be through dehydration, I would think.” mused Emile, “Or not sitting down enough. My legs hurt so much!” His laugh trailed off into silence, which was broken by Thomas.

“I told you to escape, Patton. You defied an order.” The Captain didn’t sound angry. There was nothing but disappointment and regret in his voice. Patton wished she returned the feelings, but she couldn’t. No matter what Thomas said, she’d rather die with her crew than be the one to wash up alive. "The Crofter is gone. There is nothing left of us now."

“I’m sorry sir. I couldn’t leave, I’m no coward.”

“No one would have thought you were a coward.” said Emile, kindly, ignoring Remus’ dismissive snort. “There’s a difference between being scared and being smart.”

Patton chuckled. “You’re calling me an stupid now?”

“I don’t even get why you’re here, Pat.” said Thomas, ignoring them. “I make sense; I’m the Captain. Emile is the second in command, and a doctor. He’s useful. Elliot managed to kill three pirates, so they’re not going to let him off easily. Remus, well I don’t know why Remus is here either, but what did you do? Why did they let you live?”

Before she had a chance to reply, the door directly in front of Patton, the one that most likely led the Captain’s quarters, flew open.

First emerged someone who Patton would assume to be the first mate. He looked young, with thick black hair hung low over his eyes and a hood pulled low over that. From his ankle length boots to the tunic pulled tight to his small stature, he was clad completely in leather. Two matching knives glinted in gold at his belt. He cast a scathing look towards Patton and the others before stepping to the side.

Prince Roman strode out after him.

Patton doubted anyone wouldn’t be able to recognise the Prince. He was tall; he towered over most of the pirates that fell into step behind him as he made his way forwards, but he wasn’t lanky. Muscles strained against his black tunic, with the red sash slipped neatly under the cuffs of his shoulders. Red, heeled boots tapped against the deck as he swaggered forwards, one hand resting on his hip, drawing attention to the fact that he was completely unarmed. He didn’t need a weapon. With one word, he could have them all killed. His hair was shoulder length, most of it hidden beneath a black hat, lined in gold, making it look like a crown. A cape trailed from his throat, the bottom of it hanging inches above the deck, swaying in the wind as the Captain came to a stop in front of them.

Patton wanted to look away, but her whole body had gone tense in the very presence of the Pirate Prince. She stared up at him, unable to forget how small she was, how immobilized, how at his mercy.

He was so familiar. More familiar than something ingrained by photos. She blinked, confused. Why did she feel like she knew him? It took her a moment to realise. If his hair was longer… If he took off his shirt… If he grew a moustache…

“Hello little brother.” said Captain Roman, his eyes fixed on Remus.

Brother? Brother. Did she really hear that right? It wasn’t possible. There was no way the drunk sailor who’d joked about her scaring fish away and managed to make every situation a little bit more creepy was the brother of the most famous Pirate in the world.

“You were born seconds before me. I don’t think that means I’m your little brother.”

“Those seconds are important, Re. I’m also taller.”

“Only by an inch!”

“And I also didn’t throw myself off a ship to get out of a family reunion.”

Remus didn’t seem to have a comeback to that, so he settled with a furious glare.

“Come now, don’t be grumpy. I knew we’d stumble into each other’s paths eventually; we were both born to be at sea, after all.” His voice was so smooth, Patton almost forgot who was talking. He was so well spoken, as if he too had been raised in the lap of luxury. Every word was pushed through a smile, with too-white teeth glinting in the evening light.

“So, are you going to untie me, brother?”

The Prince actually laughed. His eyes flashed with dangerous amusement.

“Untie you? So you can steal what you can get your hands on and row away? Why in the seven seas do you think I’d make the same mistake twice.” Without warning, the Prince lept forwards, moving so his hands were either side of Remus’ head, his face inches from his brother’s. Patton shrunk away, wishing she could run, wishing she could just vanish.

“I haven’t forgotten, Remus, nor have I forgiven. You betrayed me, brother. I may be the pirate, but at least I would never abandon my own crew, my own family. And look what you’ve shrunk to. You could barely stand when we dragged you on board, and you’re working on some pitiful merchant ship. Do you regret your choices, Re? Is it time for you to apologise, at last?”

It was Remus’ turn to laugh. The sound was full of ill-disguised fear. “Apologise? You know me better than that. I was sick of the orders, I left. What do I have to be sorry for?”  
The Prince didn’t even dignify him with an answer. Instead, he just walked away, eyeing them as he walked past, stopping in front of Thomas.

“And this is your Captain. Thomas, am I correct? I hear you’ve made quite a name for yourself back home.”

“I’m a good Captain.” said Thomas, stiffly. Patton couldn’t see him, but he could picture the Captain standing as straight as he could, bound to the mast, staring down the Pirate Prince with the might of the crew he had just lost.

“Clearly. Your crew survived for, what, ten minutes?”

“They’re sailors, not fighters.” 

“A good Captain, as you called yourself, would train his men to deal with pirates, should they happen to cross paths.”

There was a collective laugh from the gathered pirates. They’d all stayed quiet during the confrontation between the Prince and the Duke, but now that respectful silence seemed to have shattered.

“They put up a good fight.”

“No they didn’t. A little tip, Captain, if you want to make it across the seas, don’t hire men like my brother.”

With that, he moved on, coming to stand in front of Emile instead. Patton stared at the ground, fearful of even making eye contact. Was it foolish to hope that he would just forget about her?

“And who are you?”

“Dr Emile Picani.” Emile might have been introducing himself to his new neighbour, he sounded so cheerful.

Prince Roman let out a little laugh, obviously amused my Emile’s apparent comfort. “And what are you doing so far out here? You look like you’d be more at home in a library.” The crew laughed. To their surprise, Emile joined in.

“You’re right there.” he chucked, “Or a theatre. I’ve heard that there are some truly beautiful performances on Broadway at the moment, but alas the wallet is hard to fill, you understand. Thomas hired me to navigate his journey and help keep order on the ship.”

“What are you qualified as?” The Captain seemed genuinely interested. Patton made sure not to forget that Emile’s life was on the line.

“A psychiatrist.”

“A psychiatrist? We have no need for that.” He turned away, ready to move on, but Emile brought the attention back to himself. Maybe he did have a death wish.

“I quite agree, sir. You certainly have great self-esteem, and your crew is positively blooming. However, I can suggest that you travel along a more efficient current.”  
The Captain paused, the smiling still playing on his lips. “Okay then, you can have a chat with Critic, that’s our navigator. Once you’ve taught him a few new tricks, then we’ll dispose of you.”

Emile let out a strangled yelping noise, but the Prince had already moved on. He passed Patton and came to a stop on the other side of the mast. Patton could only assume he was regarding Elliot.

“Why are you here?”

“He held out longest, on the deck at least. Took out some of ours.” said the first mate, his voice deep and gravely. For some reason, Patton was reminded of Logan.

“He did, did he? Interesting. Kill him.”

Before Patton could even process the order, the mast behind her shuddered as a sword was plunged straight through Elliot. He didn’t even have time to scream.

She let out a yelp in shock. Her legs slipped out from under her and she sagged, managing to catch herself before she hit the deck. Now, she was somewhere between a stand and a crouch. Biting pain shot through her legs; if anything was to happen now, she would be completely vulnerable, but she couldn’t move.

Footsteps came to a stop in front of her, and she froze. The pain ebbed away, replaced by all-consuming fear. If Elliot had been killed, she was sure to be next.

“And why is this little thing here?”

The Prince had his head cocked to the side as he smiled down at her. She forced herself to look into his eyes, wishing there was somewhere else to turn, wishing she could at least stand at her full height.

“He managed to hold out in a fight against me.” said a familiar voice. She turned to see Remy emerge from the gathered pirates, his metal leg tapping the deck as he strode towards the Captain.

“For how long?”

“It had to be twenty minutes.” said a voice from a crowd. More joined in, clamouring to relay the fight.

“It was amazing, Captain, I’d never seen anything like it.”

“I thought he was going to spike Remy at one point.”

The Prince held up a hand and silence fell instantly.

“Who trained you?” His voice was still only vaguely interested, but there was something else there as well, almost like caution.

“I trained myself. I knew I had to learn to fight, so I took the sword out at night and practised alone. I didn’t do much, I didn’t know what I was doing, I-” she clamored, knowing she was probably talking too much but not knowing how to stop. To her surprise, the pirate lent down and gently put a finger to her lips. She stopped talking to focus on breathing.

“I doubt you could get that good alone. I don’t recommend lying to me, boy.”

“I think he’s telling the truth, Ro.” said Remus, uncertainly. “A week ago, he couldn’t carry a sword in his belt without poking everything in sight.”

“Beginners can have an advantage.” said Remy, softly. Patton could feel every eye on her, and she hated it. “If they don’t know moves, they’re unpredictable.”

“What’s your name, boy?” The Captain’s voice was so close. She hadn’t even noticed him crouch, but there he was.

“Patton.” Her name was met with murmurs from the surrounding pirates, and she began to panic. Had things changed back home? Would the pirates know who she was?

“And your surname?” the voice simpered.

“It’s bad luck.” she whispered.

Suddenly, there was a blade at her throat. She looked up wildly to see Remy holding his rapier there. This time, there was no way to kick out.

“I think your luck could get a hell of a lot worse.” he said, smirking.

“My surname’s Logan.” she said, wildly, unable to think through the panic. The blade was taken from her throat. The Captain got to his feet.

She was so stupid! Why hadn’t she just used the fake surname she’d been going by since getting thrown out? Now, even if the pirates had believed her, the crew would know she had something to hide. The watching pirates seemed to have taken her panic as nothing more than fear; she was safe. Only the first mate continued to look suspicious.

“They’ll walk the plank tomorrow.” said the Captain, “Give them something to drink. It’d be a shame if they died before the show.”

He turned to leave, but paused, looking back over his shoulder. A feral smile replaced the friendly one. Picking up an unopened bottle of rum and unscrewing the lid, he moved to once again stand before Remus. Not breaking eye contact for a moment, he tucking the drink into his brother’s ropes, just out of reach of his lips.

“Have a good night, brother.”


	6. Names

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of knife use here, but no actual injuries. Enjoy and let me know what you think! :))

“Elliot?” Thomas’ hopeless voice broke the silence that had settled between them in the hours since their confrontation with the Prince. “Elliot?”

“He’s gone.” said Remus, his voice as hard as stone. “Dead as a door nail.”

Thomas swore. Again and again he swore. Patton felt tears prick her eyes and tried to force the feeling away, but that only caused her to release a snorting, sobbing sound. No one commented. She had let herself fall to the deck completely now, her legs forced up by her chest. The rope had moved up to her collar, but she was small enough that it was now almost limp around her. She still didn’t try to move. She doubted she’d get three steps before someone shot her.

“He’s your brother.” said Thomas, as if he needed to hear the words out loud to fully convince himself they were true. “He’s your brother.”  
“My twin, actually.”

“And you didn’t think to mention it?”

“Okay, think about that question, Tom Tom. If I had mentioned it, would you have hired me? Even if I told you once we left the city, what would have stopped you throwing me off at the nearest port? Oh, by the way Tommy, my brother is the most notorious pirate in the seven seas and if he finds me we’re all dead!”

“I’m still your Captain and you will address me as such.”

“Oh shut up. We’re all going to die tomorrow!”

Why even come to sea if your brother’s after you?”

“He’s not. He doesn’t care about me. He just happened to stumble onto our ship and I happened to be aboard.”

“And you abandoned ship.” Thomas might not have called Remus a coward, but the word was as explicit in his voice as if he’d spoken it aloud.

“I knew he wanted me dead. What was I meant to do?”

“Talked to him? Argued for the lives of your crew!”

“You heard him, I mean nothing. He probably has more of a grudge against you because I’m with you anyway. I was protecting you by swimming away.”

Thomas didn’t reply. Emile inhaled a few times, as if he planned to break the silence, but didn’t say anything either. After however much time had passed, Patton glanced up at Remus from her position on the deck.

The back of his head was pressed against the mask, his eyes fixed furiously at the sky. A single tear slid down his dirty cheek. She hurriedly looked away.

* * *

Patton woke with a hand pressed over her mouth and a pair of eyes staring into her own. Her breath caught in her throat. She had no idea how long she’d been asleep for, but the sky was dark and starry above her, and the breathing of the others was slow and deep. Remus grunted to her left.

“If you make a sound, I’ll slit your throat.” muttered the man in front of her. Patton recognised the gruff voice of the first mate. As if to emphasise his point further, she felt something cold and sharp press against her throat. Being careful not to cut into the blade, she nodded, her eyes going wide as she tried to work out what was happening. Was this - an escape?

“Get up.” he said, standing up and stepping back. He had loosened the ropes around her, but she still struggled getting to her feet without waking the others. He waited in silence before replacing the knife back at her throat and pressed his hand on the small of her back, leading her away.

“Is this a rescue?” she whispered, knowing it probably sounded stupid but needing to know. “The others-”

“I said quiet.” he growled, “I have no intention of rescuing you.”

She gritted her teeth and said nothing more, letting him lead her into the hull of the ship. They passed a few pirates along the way, but none of them even noticed them. The first mate was small, only slightly taller than she was, and exceptionally light on his feet. She struggled to match his silence. Moving suddenly, he pushed her into what seemed to be a cupboard and shut the door behind them.

“Sit on the barrel.” He said, moving the knife and pushing her towards a pile of barrels that she guessed contained food. Trying not to take her eyes off him, she did what he said. He lent against the door, his arms crossed, his hood still pulled low over his face. Silence fell into place. Patton waited for him to break it. He didn’t, just continued to watch her, his eyes unblinking and sullen. She gulped.

“What’s your name?”

“You can call me V.”

“But that’s not your real name?”

“No, it’s not.

“Why don’t you tell me your actual name? Why does it matter?”

“Why did you call yourself Logan?”

“I - that’s my name.”

“No it’s not. Your name is Patton Davis.”

Patton squeaked. She’d not heard that name in months, almost a year, and yet it still bit at her with the same pain. He knew. He knew who she was. That was it; it was all over.

“Don’t work yourself up, I will not be returning you to your family. They have offered a reward for your return, alive or dead, but I have no interest in that.”

“But - you’re a pirate.” She knew there were more important things to worry about, to ask, but the idea of a pirate not wanting a reward was plaguing. He ignored her.

“I understand why you want to hide your surname, but - why Logan? You’ve been going by the name ‘Cook’ since you left New York. Why change it.”

“I panicked - I don’t know why I said Logan.”

“I don’t believe you.” he paused, as if musing what to tell her. “You met a mermaid, didn’t you?”

“What! No.” She stumbled, without thinking, knowing that she had made it painfully obvious that she was lying.

“Was it just you, or did the whole crew see him?”

“I - everyone did.” she hung her head in shame. The idea of the pirates hunting after Logan was haunting, even if she owed him nothing.

“Of course.” V sounded more fed up than anything. His responses weren’t fitting with her idea of the direction this conversation was travelling in. “He never could keep his mouth shut.”

She looked up, surprised. “Wait, you know him?”

He glared at her, his eyes only visible because of how bright they were in the darkness of his hood and his low hanging hair.

“Listen.” he said, his voice soft and dangerous, “My guess is that tomorrow, Roman is going to ask you about the mermaid.”

“Okay,” her voice was tight and small, “And you want us to tell him everything?”

“No. I want you to tell him nothing. I don’t care what he does or says, I don’t care if he cuts off both your arms, you never saw the mermaid. Understand?”

“But - wait - so you don’t want me to tell The Prince about the mermaid?”

“That’s correct.”

“But that mutiny!”

“I’m a pirate, right? Do you really expect me to follow the rule book? Now, you need to go back to the others and find some way to convince them not to say anything either.” Patton doubted that V had blinked through the entire conversation. She was beginning to find his endless, piercing stare tiring.

“Can I tell the others about this conversation? I don’t know how else I’m going to convince them-”

“No. If Sanders finds out I’m going behind Roman’s back, he’ll use it to his advantage. He’ll try and turn the crew against itself. Convince them on their own terms.” His mouth twitched into something that could have been a smile if he’d allowed it to extend to his eyes. “You’re smart enough to come up with something new.”

Patton hesitated, and then decided to speak her mind. What did she have to lose?

“I’m smart enough to know you’re doing something you shouldn’t be. What’s stopping me from calling out right now and exposing you? Then I could get a chance to escape.”

Patton didn’t even see the man move. One moment, he was still gazing at her with the ferocity of a spider observing a fly. The next, a golden knife was flying through the air towards her. It skimmed her shoulder, sinking deep into the wood of the boat, pinning her to the wall by her shirt. Letting out a strangled yelp, she attempted to pull it out, to move, but she couldn’t. She was trapped.

“If you shout, I’ll send the next knife straight through your throat.” He didn’t sound angry. It was almost as if he’d expected her to raise that exact point. The other knife was twirling around his fingers, moving so fast it was almost as if it spun on its own accord.

Patton nodded vigorously, no longer pulling at the knife that pinned her, staring at the weapon still in V’s hand.

“I still don’t-” Her words jumped over one another and she swallowed before starting again. “I still don’t see a reason why I should do this. What’s going to stop me using it to my advantage?” She knew it was idiotic for bringing it up, but she wasn’t going to put any escape plan into place if this guy had ways to stop her.

“If you tell Roman about Logan, or about this conversion, I’ll kill your little doctor friend.” The threat wasn’t spoken in a spiteful way, it was almost matter of fact, but Patton still went completely stiff, her mouth falling open as fear swept through her. She could do something if it was her life on the line. She might have even taken a risk if it was Remus’ or even Thomas’, but Emile? She doubted he’d even had a bad dream in his life. He wouldn’t know what was happening or how to even begin to stop it if V attacked him.

“Why Dr Pincai?” she asked, quietly. “Why not me?”

“Because you’re the kind of person who’d do anything for someone else. You would rather be dead then live with the guilt that you could have saved someone’s life.”

“How do you know?” She shifted suddenly, glaring forwards, meeting the eyes of the pirate and holding his gaze. “It could all be an act.” she tried to make her voice dark and mysterious, almost a mirror of his own. She tried to sound as if she was tempting him, daring him to question her, hoping he would.

“Because you questioned me. You asked why I didn’t just threaten you instead. If you truly didn’t care about the doctor’s life, you wouldn’t have even asked.”

She understood that, and nodded bitterly, breaking the stare between them. He still didn’t look away from her, and remained standing against the door. As the silence stretched forwards and Patton began to wonder what else he could possibly want with her, she began to shake. Clasping her hands together, she tried to stop the shiver, but that seemed to only send it quaking through her body. Tears demanded release at her eyes again, and she blinked them back, refusing them. The more she tried to deny her body, the more it seemed to bring itself to the brink of collapse. Her breathing sped up, her thoughts beginning to spiral around each other until she could barely see through the images clouding her mind.

A deep breath from ahead of her brought her slamming back to the here and now. Blinking through her blurry eyes, she managed to fix her gaze on V again and used him to ground her.

The expression he wore confused her. He didn’t look amused or uncaring, he didn’t even look pitying. His mouth was slightly ajar, his eyes wide beneath his untidy crop of hair. It made him look young, vulnerable. Like a child scared of someone they should be able to trust.

“You’re terrified.” He said, softly, all the aggression gone from his voice.

“No I’m not.” She didn’t know why she was denying it. It was clear that every thought was written on her face.

“Yes you are.”

She paused, trying to control the wobbling of her bottom lip. She wasn’t going to cry in front of a pirate.

“I’m fine.”

“What are you scared of? Being thrown overboard? Your Captain being thrown overboard? The pirates finding out who you really are?”

“How about the pirate who just pinned me to the wall and threatened to kill my friend?”

He froze, the knife dancing along his fingers coming to a halt for the first time.

“Please understand I don't have a choice in this. Roman can’t know about the mermaid. As long as you do as I ask, everyone will be fine.”

“Until the Prince throws us overboard?”

“Many survive walking the plank. You might be lucky.”

They didn’t talk again after that. This time, V didn’t bother putting the knife to Patton’s throat. He led her back to the mast without touching her. She knew she should take the opportunity to jump overboard, to escape and return with help, but somehow she couldn’t bring herself to move anywhere other than the direction of the mast.

She slumped back against wood and let V rearrange the ropes around her. He left without comment. She didn’t know if she was just tired or going completely mad, but her thoughts seemed to have turned to liquid. The night’s events replayed themselves in front of her eyes, dancing and twirling until she couldn’t help but smile.

One thing kept swimming to the forefront of her mind.

V had referred to his crew as the ‘pirates’, as if he wasn’t one of them. What could that mean?


	7. Confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was fun to write. Enjoy and let me know what you think!!

“Wake up, sleepy head.” sang a light, teasing voice. “You don’t want to sleep through your last day alive.”

Patton screwed her eyes shut and tried to push whoever it was away. It was too early for chores. The boat bounced gently beneath her, rocking her back to sleep.

“Go ‘way.”

There was a chuckling sound, coupled with an exasperated sigh.

“You sound like a girl when you’ve just woken up.”

Her eyes snapped open and fixed on Remy. Was it just her, or was everyone getting into a habit of watching her in her sleep?

“What do you want?” She snapped, struggling to sit up straight with the ropes V had pulled tight around her.

“I just didn’t think you’d want to sleep in.” the pirate mused, rising from his crouch and looking down at Patton. “Enjoy the view, make the most of breathing, and all the things that are generally associated with being alive. I’m looking forward to watching you walk the plank. Tell me, are you planning on diving, or do we get to poke you over with a sword?”

“Go away, or - or I’ll poke you.”

“Oh, you got me good there.” His smirk was probably the most infuriating thing she’d ever seen.

“I would have thought you’d be humiliated. From what I can tell, you’re all the rage around here, and I almost beat you.”

“Oh, honey, I’m not embarrassed. I’m intrigued.” His eyes bored into hers. She blinked and looked away, not looking back until he’d sauntered away, laughing to himself.

“You alright, Patton?” asked Thomas, quietly.

“Of course he’s alright.” snorted Remus, “We’d all be alright if we got woken up by sexy pirates.”

“Shut up, Remus.”

“Make me, Tom Tom.”

“Hey, Captain.” Patton said, uncertainly, the night’s events coming back to her in a trickling stream. She needed to stop them from saying anything about mermaids. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Do you think Logan might help us?”

“I don’t think we can pin any hope on him.” said Thomas, as if he’d already given the matter some thought. “I’ve racked my brains, but I don’t see a way out of this. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” said Patton, hurriedly. She didn’t want Thomas blaming himself. “But, do you think the pirates know about mermaids?”

“I don’t know, and honestly I have other things to think about right now.”

“It’s only because - I was just thinking that, well, if Logan does come to save us, it’d be best if the pirates didn’t know anything about mermaids, so it’d be more of a surprise attack.”

“Oh, come on Patton.” said Remus, somehow managing to kick Patton in the shin, “There are no mythical creatures coming to save us! Just give up and pretend you’re drunk.”

“Pretend I’m drunk?” she asked, casting a glance at the bottle still wedged in Remus’ bonds.

“It’s the closest you’re ever gonna get! I can’t believe you’re dying a virgin.”

She felt herself go red.

“How do you know? We met, like, two months ago.”

“Tell me I’m wrong.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being a virgin.” said Emile, calmly.

“Of course, it’s just sad to die as one.”

Before she could think of a retort, the door to the Captain’s quarters was flung earlier and V emerged, looking furious. Patton shrunk against the mask as he stalked towards them. For the first time, his hood was pushed back, revealing an untidy mess of black hair. His eyes glowed through his fringe like torches in a storm.

“Which way did it go?” he growled, knives twisting around his fingers like snakes.

“That’s the problem with pirates.” said Remus, talking over Thomas’ attempt to reply. “They assume everyone knows what they’re talking about and you’ll give them any information they want.”

“What are you looking for?” asked Emile, sounding curious. Despite the situation, Patton had to bite back her smile. The Doctor was always so positive, it was refreshing.

“The mermaid. We know you spoke to it. It’s not a hard question; which way did it go?”

“Mermaid?” Patton squeaked, hoping the others would follow her lead. When V had said the pirates would ask about the mermaids, she hadn’t thought it would be him doing the questioning, and she hadn’t thought he would be so aggressive about it. “Mermaids are just a myth!”

“And you met one. I thought we told you not to lie.”

“I think you might need to lay off the rum.” said Thomas, much to Patton’s relief. “There’s no such thing as mermaids.”

“Stop denying it. There was obvious evidence on your ship; you were in an ideal position to make contact.”

“Is that why you were hanging round there?” asked Remus, smugly. “You were looking for mermaids? My brother really had lost it.”

One knife flew out of V’s hands, embedding itself deeply into the mast by Remus’ throat.

“Don’t disrespect the Captain.” he snarled, throwing up the other knife and catching it again, fixing his terrifying stare on Remus and not letting go.

“He’s my brother, I can say what I want. Did you know he keeps girl’s underwear under his bed? He likes to wear it when no one’s around.”

The pirates around them were pretending not to listen to the interrogation, but at Remus’ comment someone let out a cackle of laughter. Patton suspected Remy.

“I really don’t think your brother would mind if I cut your tongue out, so watch it.”

The more Patton watched V, the more she could sense uncertainty in him. Despite his threats and his staring, he didn’t seem to actually like being this aggressive. The knife in his fingers stayed where it was, and the constant twirling of it made him seem more nervous than confident. She decided to test the waters, to see how loose his anxiety made his tongue.

“Why are you looking for mermaids? Even if they did exist, what could they possibly offer you?”

V looked taken aback. He stared down at her, surprised, caught off guard. Patton struggled to keep her face straight; she’d found a weapon.

“Mermaids are said to be powerfully magical creatures.” he said, carefully, seeming to forget that he had no reason to answer her in the first place. “If they did exist, it would offer us everything.”  
It was clear what his answer translated to. If the pirates find out about mermaids, they will be unstoppable. Is that what you want?

She knew she should stop there, that the more she pushed him the more danger she was putting herself and Emile in, but she couldn’t help herself.

“Why do you even think they exist? Are you searching the Loch Ness Monster as well?”

V opened his mouth to answer again, his eyes flashing angrily.

“Why do you care?” said Remy, seeming to appear out of nowhere. He put a hand on V’s shoulder, gently moving him out the way and taking his place looking down at Patton. V bit his lip, his face like thunder, but didn’t object to the motion.

Patton instantly felt fearful again. She couldn’t push Remy. It was clear he would have no problem in cutting out their tongues if he felt like it; her opportunity was gone.

“Well? Answer me, honey, or I might just find you slip over the side of the deck a little earlier than you were meant to.”

“I was just curious-”

“Of course, silly me. Anyone would ask such mundane questions to their soon-to-be murders. It sounds to me that you know something more than you’re telling us.”

Patton was starting to panic. The rest of her crew stayed silent, which was probably a good thing. No doubt they thought she knew where she was going with this and wanted to leave her to it, but that left a lot of weight on her shoulders, especially since she had no idea where she was going with this.

“We visited a port a few days ago.” she blurted, as much to her own surprise as everyone around her’s. “The Captain sent me to get salt and the woman I brought it from told me that when there was salt on our ship mermaids could come aboard, because they wanted to eat the sailors. I just thought it was weird that two people had spoken to me about mermaids so close together.” She tried to narrow her eyes and look at them suspiciously. “Maybe you know something you’re not telling me.”

“You’ve got some nerve.”

“I’m dying today anyway, apparently, although you’re certainly taking your time about it.” She was right; the sun had already peaked and was making its descent towards the horizon.

“You walk the plank at sundown.” said V, stepping in front of Remy again. The corner of his mouth twitched. The movement might have meant to be a smile, and Patton took it as a sign that she had done something right.

The two pirates turned away. She heard V quietly thank Remy, who slapped the first mate on the back before leaving him to make his own way back to the captain’s quarters.

“What was that about?” asked Thomas. Patton wished she could look at her Captain, she hated not being to make out more than words.

“I don’t know.”

“Yes you do.” said Remus, “You brought up mister sexy tail before they’d mentioned mermaids at all. You knew they were going to talk to us about something.”

“How would I know that?” She didn’t know why she even needed to explain herself to Remus. Maybe she still hadn’t realised that this was her last day alive. The whole prospect seemed to wash over her like a weak wave, until fear had dulled and there was nothing left, no anticipation or apprehension. She felt nothing. “I just thought it was our last hope. The pirates can’t know about him.” Her voice was flat and emotionless. If she didn’t feel like she could get up and swim all the way back to America if given the chance, she would have said she was tired, but it was more like numbness.

“I don’t think we have a last hope, Patton.” said Thomas, his voice sadder than Patton had ever heard it. “Does anyone have anything they’d like to confess?”

“What?”

“I doubt the pirates would let us do it. It’s a tradition that no sailor should sink with secrets. I know I’m not who you would choose to confess to in any situation, and I know you would prefer to do it in private, but we have limited options here. Patton?”

“Why do I have to go first?”

“Because Emile probably doesn’t even know what a secret is and the idea of Remus confessing scares me half to death.”

“Okay, I agree with you there.” Patton lapsed into silence as she tried to think of how to confess.

It wasn’t a long list, but it was a complicated one. She couldn’t go ahead and admit she was really a girl; one of the pirates might hear and work out who she actually was. If her family were offering a reward for her, she probably needed to improve her facade.

“I confess to pretending to be someone I’m not.” she said, slowly, being careful not to give away anything more than she needed to for her own peace of mind. “I confess to running away from a life I should have made the most of and I confess to being idiotic when contemplating what I needed to do to look after myself. I confess to defying my Captain’s orders and I confess to lying about my - my ignorance.” She probably shouldn’t have spoken the last one out loud, it wasn’t her fault she couldn’t tell them about her discussion with V. It was for Emile’s safety. She still felt a need to list it; she hated lying.

“No need to go into any details.” said Remus, sarcastically.

“She said enough, Dukey.” snapped Thomas, much to Patton’s relief.

“Enough for you, maybe. I wanted something juicy!”

“I bet you’ve got enough juicy confessions for a lifetime. If we want to get finished by sundown, I think you’d better begin.”

“Okay, everyone get comfy.”

Patton really didn’t want to listen to this, but she doubted anything could stop the Duke now, so she gritted her teeth and prepared for the ride.

“I’ve been arrested twelve times, twice for stealing, three times for assault, but only when the other guy was being a cock. Twice for arson, once for forgery, twice for identity theft, and one murder.”

“Murder?”

“Sorry, I misspoke. Suspected murder. I didn’t actually do anything, but someone dislikes me enough to make it look like I did.”

“I’m just surprised you’ve not been arrested for running around drunk.”

“Oh, are we counting that? Then I think the numbers might be in the hundreds,”

Thomas let out a long sigh. Patton withheld a chuckle; the Captain was a great guy, but doubted anyone wanted to spend their last day alive listening to Remus’ confessions.

“Is that all?”

Remus let out a loud laugh.

“Of course not. I haven’t even mentioned the time I lost my friend’s dog when I was meant to be taking it for a walk, and I just got him a new one. And there were the Stacy twins, probably best I don’t talk about what happened with the Stacy twins.”

Remus continued to ramble on, every so often pausing to laugh at what must be particularly horrendous memories. Patton did her best to zone out, this wasn’t for her to hear, but it was difficult not to listen to Remus recounting his attempt to ride a shark.

“Okay.” said Thomas, at last, when the sun was almost brinking the ocean. “I get you’ve got a lot to get off your chest, Remus, but Dr Picani needs a chance to speak.”

“Oh come on, the librarian won’t have anything good.”

Emile chuckled. “You underestimate me, young one. I have many secrets.”

“Oh really? Like what?”

“Well, I confess that my son is the King of England.”

Stunned silence met his words. What - how? How was that even possible? Patton twisted to stare up at Dr Picani, who was looking straight ahead, lost in thought and smiling fondly.

“Your son is the King of England?” Thomas repeated, slowly.

“Yes, well, when I was much younger, me and some of my university friends went on holiday, you see. We spent a night in London and must have had a little too much to drink because when I woke up the next morning I was in the royal palace next to the Princess.”

“You knocked up the Princess of England?” said Roman. Patton had never heard him sound more gleeful.

“Nothing bad came of it. Apparently, my son looks quite a lot like the man who should have been his father, so no one got suspicious.”

“Have you ever met him?” asked Patton, agog.

“Twice. He doesn’t know who I am, of course, but I’m lucky that my work meant I got to meet him. I’m proud of him. I know I have very little connection with him, apart from pure biology, but he is a smart, well read boy. He’s done well for himself.”

“Yeah, he’s the king of England.” Remus sounded bitter. He was probably grumpy that Emile had managed to upstage every despicable thing he’d spent his life trying to accomplish.

Throughout the remainder of the afternoon, they continued telling stories. Eventually, the confessions became more and more lighthearted, until Remus had them all in stitches and Emile was teaching them about places they would have never gotten to visit. When the evening drew on, Patton began making up stories, telling things she’d wished she’d done as if she’d lived them, rather than truths. She knew it was probably wrong, but who was going to call her out? They were all going to die anyway.

None of them could forget their forthcoming demise, but as Patton watched the sun set, she couldn’t help but smile.


	8. Laughter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Splashy time! This is sad... also just a quick warning there's a recount of abuse between the creativity twins.

Half of the sun was hidden by the distant horizon. Patton stared at it. She stared at the golden sea, the waves that peaked and lunged under the setting sun, the red sails that filled with the evening breeze. She never wanted to stop looking. Every blink was an inconvenience, as was any sudden noise that made her look round. She just wanted to stare at the sea, in her last hours alive, and still be staring at it as it engulfed her.

To her annoyance, her attention was drawn by the Prince emerging in a flourish from his quarters, his cape fluttering in the wind behind him.

“Let’s get this underway.” he shouted, to cheers and hollers from the gathered pirates. Patton assumed this must be the entire crew gathered on the deck, it was completely full of men. They sat on the beams and hung from the rigging, jostling each other for space, sharing bets on who would take longest to drown.

“There is an alternative, brother.” said the Prince, swaggering up to the mast and leaning close to Remus. “If you simply apologise for the wrongs you have done me, I will let you live.”

“You should apologise to me.” snapped Remus, his voice out of control, his eyes going wide as his head flung itself side to side. “You’re the reason I needed to do what I did.”

“Of course, because showing you brotherly love is always the recipe for betrayal.”

“Brotherly love?” Remus spat in the Prince’s face. Patton couldn’t help but gasp at the sheer nerve of him. “Do you count using me for target practise as love? How about the time you tied my hands together and threw me overboard? Or the time you tricked me into getting drunk and nailed me under the floorboards back home, so I didn’t even know what was happening? If I hadn’t left when I did, you would have killed me, Ro.”

“You didn’t have to steal half a ship's load of treasure, did you?” growled the Prince, his smile slipping for the first time since Patton had set eyes on him. To her horror, she realised he had made no attempt to deny Remus’ allegations. If all that were true, well, it was no wonder the Duke was the way he was.

“I needed to do something to stop you.”

“Are you ashamed your brother is the most fearsome pirate in the oceans? Did you really think you could even begin to slow me down, let alone stop me, by stealing treasure?”

Remus let out a crazed, cackling laugh. “Stop you? Of course I didn’t want to stop you pirating. I just wanted to remind you that you were not invincible. You kept putting yourself in danger, so much danger Ro. That’s what I wanted to stop.”

“Are you saying you were trying to keep me safe?” Amusement lifted the Prince’s voice. Remus let his head hang, his lips pressing together. Patton looked up at him. She wished he would look at her, so she could smile, so she could make everything a little bit better.

“Have you heard from mum?” the Duke asked, surprising all of them.

“Yes.” the Prince straightened up, his voice tightening. “She’s dead. Passed away about six months ago, in her sleep.”

“Oh.” Remus paused before continuing, “Do you know who she left the house to?”

“You, believe it or not. Apparently she still had hope for you. Enough hope to leave you a great fancy house, anyway. I took the liberty of selling it on your behalf.”

Remus snorted. “Thanks brother.”

“Anytime.” The Prince turned to the surrounding pirates, who had fallen lax during the conversation between the brothers. “Someone cut these bilge rats loose, and for God’s sake make sure you keep a firm hold on them.”

The rope around Patton’s chest fell loose as someone out of sight cut it. She scrambled to her feet, looking around frantically for an escape route through the crowded ship. Before she could move, strong hands took hold of her wrists, forcing them behind her back.

“I’m looking forward to this.” whispered Remy in her ear. “Tell me, are you good at swimming? I like it when they try and swim to safety, it means we can watch the sharks get you while you’re still alive.”

Patton gritted her teeth and kicked back, but he was ready. His metal leg met her foot and she whimpered as he forced her to her knees, pinning her thighs to the deck so she was dangling from his grip.

“If you want to watch the remainder of your crew in their final moments, I suggest you behave. I doubt anyone would care if I chucked you overboard with my own hands. The Captain’s death is always fun to watch, and the Prince will want to deal with his brother himself. Even the Doctor deserved some dignity in his death, at least he’s worked to be fat. You, on the other hand, mean nothing to no one. You send no message, you have no purpose. Why should you deserve the dignity of the plank?”

“I nearly beat you.” She gasped, wishing he would remove the pressure on her legs, ignoring the sniggering pirates quickly making a ring around the two of them. “Give me a sword and we’ll go round two.”

Remy chuckled. She could picture his smirk, and she hated it.

“There’s one thing you need to remember when living at sea: know when you’re in danger. You came very close to beating me, boy. You understand why I’m not willing to repeat the situation.”

She would have liked nothing more than to reveal herself there and then, to shout in Remy’s face that he had, in fact, been almost beaten by a girl.

“Coward.” She muttered, fighting to free her hands from his grip and only causing his hold on her to tighten.

“Coward? I’m no coward, Patton. There is a difference between being scared and being smart. If you had learned that difference, I doubt you would even be here, facing death by pirates.”

Managing to lift her infuriatingly easily, Remy dragged her to her feet and pulled her close to his chest, one hand still holding her wrists together behind her, the other on her shoulder, making sure she couldn’t go far.

One of the pirates was extending the plank over the edge of the ship, securing it down with rope and sticking out a foot to check it’s wobble. The gathered crowd whooped and shouted, most of them obviously drunk, all of them unable to contain their excitement for the execution ahead.

Patton’s eyes were drawn to the one point of stillness on the ship. V was leaning against the front mast, his arms crossed, his face sad and far away. Again, he wasn’t wearing his hood, and Patton couldn’t help but admire how jet black his hair was, how bright his eyes were underneath his fringe. Even from this distance, the icy colour shone like the moon.

Movement near the plank caught her attention, and she turned to watch as Thomas was shoved in front of it. He took a struggling step backwards, his face as calm and impassive as ever. The Captain’s arms were tied behind his back with thick, unbreakable rope and someone had stolen his hat, so his dusky hair flew backwards in the winds. In that moment, he looked positively heroic.

“You can go first, Captain.” sneered the Prince, leaning up against the railings of the ship and tilting his head to one side as he spoke.

Thomas inclined his head slightly.

“Thank you, Captain.” His voice was calm, but cold fury burned behind his eyes and the smoke of his anger was rampant in his voice.

Anyone observing might have remarked it looked like the two Captains were flirting. It was only within earshot that one realised exactly how much hatred stirred between the two men. Thomas had lied to the Pirate Prince, and there was nothing Captain Roman could do. The Prince was about to end Thomas’ life, and there was no chance of help’s arrival.

The Prince stepped out of the way of the plank, gesturing for Thomas to walk it. Thomas didn’t move. He stood, stubbornly, not moving his eyes off the Prince. Patton almost whimpered at the look on his face. If her soft hearted, sweet natured Captained had ever turned that expression towards her, she would have run as far as she could get, and further.

“Don’t be a pouter.” simpered the Prince, “Walk the plank, Sanders.”

“If you think I’m going to willingly walk to my own death, you are quite mistaken.”

“I was trying to let you maintain whatever dignity you still cling to, but so be it.” He waved his hand lazily, and Thomas was thrust forwards, staggering to the end of the plank, having to crouch to keep his balance. Gracefully, he rose back to his feat and turned once again to the pirate Captain. His expression hadn’t changed in the slightest. 

“The waves look a little choppy, don’t they?” mused the Prince, leaning over the side of the ship.

“Enjoy trying to swim through them.”

Patton gritted her teeth. Thomas wouldn’t be able to swim, he wouldn’t even be able to try with his hands bound as they were.

“Send him over.”

Like dogs let out of their cages, the pirates surged forwards, swords held before them. Laughter filled the ship as Thomas was forced to edge further and further backwards to avoid the approaching cutlasses. Patton wanted to screw her eyes shut and turned away, but she knew she had to witness this. Thomas had probably saved her life. She owed it to him to be brave for his death.

Just as he reached the edge of the plank, his heels pressed against the drop, he suddenly sprung into the air. The laughter died suddenly as the whole ship watched him reach the peak of his arc and then begin to drop. He fell past the edge of the ship and out of sight. Patton searched the waters, terrified, but realised a moment later that he hadn’t even breached the surface.

Thomas was clinging to the end of the plank with his bound hands. With one impossible movement, he managed to twist himself back onto the wood and stood where he had been a moment before, managing to look a thousand times more smug while still maintaining that deadly stare fixed on the Prince.

This might be the end for Thomas, but at least he’d gone out looking as cool as he possibly could.

“Throw the doctor over.” said the Prince, without taking his eyes off Thomas, managing to continue that friendly, open smile as he ordered the death of an innocent man.

Emile squealed as he was heaved over the side of the ship without warning. The sound was both pitiful and the most painful thing Patton had ever heard. Unable to help herself, she started forwards, only to have Remy drag her back and increase the strength of his grip on her tenfold.

Thomas swore, not pausing before he dived overboard after the Dr Picani. The two of them disappeared beneath the waves, leaving nothing more than a gap in the foam and a boat of cackling pirates.

Patton held her breath, waiting for them to resurface, waiting for something to happen. They couldn’t swim; Dr Picani would have been weighed down by his layers of clothes and Thomas had been bound. Surely, that must mean they must float back up, if they stopped struggling?

But they didn’t reappear.

Patton was forced to let her breath out, her hope dwindling like a dying candle in a storm. Was that it? Her Captain and her friend, both dead, gone before either of them could truly realise what was happening.

“Remus, you can go next.” sung the Prince, as if it was a treat.

“Come on, brother.” stammered Remus, his eyes fixed on the sea ahead of him. There was none of the coolness Thomas had managed to exhibit, nor any of the fear of Emile. Remus was straight out panicking. His eyes were wide, his head shaking frantically from one side to the other. Patton realised that the Prince was letting him panic on purpose. He was drawing out the suffering. She felt sick.

“Would you rather apologise?”

“I’m sorry.” Remus said, at once. “I’m sorry I left, I’m sorry I stole from you. You can do whatever you want with me. Just let me live.”

“And what would you do if I let you live? What more could you possibly want to do with your miserable life? You’ve always been useless. It even got boring to torment you near the end. You did everyone a favour by leaving, and now you get to do it a second time. What luck!”

“Please, brother. Please. I’ll make it up with you. I’ll get you gold, I’ll kill for you. I’ll do anything.”  
“Why do you want to live so badly?”

“I-” Remus gulped and tried again. “I-”

“You don’t have a reason. You’re just a coward, scared of death.”

There was a thump as Remus’ knees hit the deck. He raised his hands upwards, ringing them at his brother.

“Please. I’m begging you.”

Roman just smiled down at him, his head tilted, his hands on his hips, like Remus was a puppy asking for food.

“Throw him over.” he said, turning away.

“No!” Remus screamed. Tears reached Patton’s eyes as she watched the pirates grab him and practically throw him down the plank. He struggled to get his footing, one foot slipping over the side. The rest of him followed.

His final shriek was silenced as he hit the waves, and there was no more of him.

Patton was alone.

She stared at the spot where he had disappeared, trying not to notice the attention of every pirate turning to her, still caged in Remy’s arms. She was alone. She was trapped. She was about to die.

A rope was forced around her wrists. She didn’t resist it, she didn’t even look at who was binding her. She could feel tears running down her cheeks, but she wasn’t crying them. Not really. They were just spilling forwards because she was too numb to stop them.

“Hey.” V’s voice was loud in her ear. She blinked, wishing she could bring herself to care, but what did she have left to care about? “Don’t drift off. If you’re going to survive this, you need to be you. The ropes are loose. Breathe slowly. Focus on the smell of the sea. Feel the wood under your feet. Don’t let go.”

She did as he asked, too lost to question it. Breathe. Her breath caught in her throat and she tried again, ignoring the sob that managed to escape on her first attempt. The sea. Salt. The grime of the ship, the smell of bodies around her. The ground. The floor of the ship rocking gently under her feet. It was such a comforting feeling; she loved that rocking.

Gradually, she felt the numbness begin to melt. Her tears became her’s again. She began to panic, but at least it was real panic, her panic. Someone, Remy, was walking her forwards, towards the Prince, towards the plank.

Trying to be as abrupt as possible, she threw herself to the side, landing on the deck and heaving herself to her feet before anyone else could get a hold on her. She broke into a run with nowhere to go, knowing she needed to get away. She was going to die; there was no question there. The question was whether she was going to make it easy for them.

The answer was no.

Hands closed around her wrists, and she threw her fists at whoever had hold of her. She made contact with something and the grip lessened enough for her to dart away, only to have more hands stop her.

She hadn’t eaten in days; they’d given her very little to drink. It shocked her how quickly she drove herself to near collapse. Completely exhausted, she found herself standing in front of the Prince, swaying.

He grinned down at her. 

“You’re quite the little fighter, aren’t you?”

“I try.”Before any of them could touch her, she turned and ran along the plank. As she threw herself off the edge, she fully came to terms with what she was doing. She was dying. And she didn’t regret it. This was going to happen anyway; she would much rather run and jump than let herself be pushed. 

She hit the water laughing.


	9. Coconuts

Patton struggled against the ropes that still bound her hands behind her back. It had been seconds since she’d hit the water, and already it felt like she was running out of breath. V had said he’d left the ropes loose, but she still couldn’t fight them off. Instead, it felt like more and more layers of rope were being wrapped around her, pulling on her legs, her stomach, her throat.  
She screwed her eyes shut against the salty water, starting to thrash against the ropes, biting her lips to stop herself from trying to breathe.  
She didn’t know how close to the surface she was, or how long it had been since she’d hit the water, but already there was no air left in her. She could only struggle, trying to fling her body upwards, but which way was up?  
The ropes pulled tighter, until she was contorted into shapes her body screamed against and she couldn’t figure out how to go back to normal, no matter how hard she twisted and turned. Water pushed down on her, the pressure building until she tried to scream, the sound lost in the depths of the ocean.  
She was alone, truly alone.  
She had never been so alone.  
The burning started next. It felt like someone had poured boiling water down her throat, into her lunges, her stomach. She choked, trying to cough it up, trying to escape the fire inside her, to no avail.  
Her body seized up, until the thrashing was purely in her head, until the dreadful calm of floating drowned out the panic clogging her thoughts, until her shrieks sounded like they were in a different language. Everything was black, gone.  
Was she dead?  
No. It hurt too much for her to be dead. There was so much pain. It felt like each shred of skin was getting ripped from the next, until she was nothing but blood and flesh left for the sharks.  
She needed to breathe. She had to. It didn’t matter that there was no air, she tried anyway, and when she couldn’t breathe, she just tried harder.  
Was she dead yet?  
Arms clamped around her, the arms of the ocean pulling her close before her demise. She would die in it’s warm embrace, the pain finally ebbing away, beautiful numbness finally taking its place. She could breathe. There was warm air in her lungs, letting her relax, letting her sink, without struggling, into the darkness.  
She heard singing. It wasn’t close, she wasn’t even sure if it was real, but it was beautiful. Great, hollow voices rang through the ocean, speaking in languages that Patton had never heard, languages so graceful she cried because she’d never know what the words meant. Her tears mixed with the ocean, the salt of her sadness becoming one with the waters that had helped her from the docks of New York and had delivered her happily into death's waiting arms.  
Smiling, Patton fell loose, listening to the singing, letting warmth put her to sleep.  
* * *  
There were birds.  
Patton wished they would be quiet, she just wanted to sleep, but their screeches wouldn’t cease. They weren’t the pesky creatures from New York, or the greedy sea birds that had occasionally joined them throughout their voyage. She couldn’t open her eyes to look, but she pictures them as giants, with golden feathers and hooked beaks, reading to take down the fiercest of prey with ease.  
She hadn’t expected there to be birds in the afterlife, but now she thought about it, it made sense. Man and creatures shared the earth in their life, it was only right that they shared a different world in death.  
There was a lot about the afterlife that had surprised her, so far. She had thought there would be other people, but it must have been days since she’d woken up, and she hadn’t heard anyone else. Of course, it might have only been minutes. It wasn’t for her to judge. She had thought it would be clean and glistening, but her body lay on something rough and course. There were strong smells and cold winds. Her clothes hung off of her in damp ribbons, and she shivered through the nights. She had thought the pain would go away, but as each day passed it seemed to double. Her lungs were raw, so her breath came in pants and every so often her body convulsed, as if it was trying to force even more water out of her. Her limbs ached, her arms still bound behind her back, her shoulders screaming with the pain of it. Her head pounded. Why didn’t the pain just go away? She had no need for it here.  
Eventually, she managed to gather herself enough to open her eyes. She was on a beach, lying deep within the white sand. There were grains of it clinging to her eyes, her lips, her fingers. She did her best to sweep it away before staggering to her feet, bending over taking several rasping breaths before being able to fully straighten up.  
The sea was calm behind her, the waves lapping gently at the beach. She squinted to look at the sun, waiting for the black spots to disappear from her vision before trying to work out exactly where it was in the sky. It looked like it was about midday, which had meant she had spent the entire night and morning either in the sea or on the beach. How was she even alive? Was she alive, or was it heaven? Maybe this was what her afterlife looked like. It made sense; she had always felt most at home on the sea, but she had never considered she’d even be accepted into heaven. With the things she’d done, she had had no doubt that she’d been destined for hell. Maybe things were about to go downhill.  
She turned away from the sea to take in the land where she was washed up. From what she could see, it was an island centred by a hill covered in forest. It wasn’t small, but she doubted it was part of any trading routes or housed a settlement. She would have to explore it properly, but as far as she could tell, she was still alone.  
As far as she could tell.  
Even if no one lived there, even if no one was coming to help, she still had a crew. If she had made it to safety, there had to be a chance that the others had too. Maybe Thomas was here, ready to get them through this, or Emile with his seemingly endless wisdom. Hell, she would have burst into tears at the sight of Remus at this point.  
New hope kindling inside her, refusing to consider the alternative, she stumbled up the beach towards the treeline. Her skin was red after spending too long under the sun, and every bone in her body screamed at her to rest after its battle with the sea, but she pressed onwards.  
Most of the trees towered over here, but some were so small she could reach up and brush her hands against the leaves. The first thing she did was cut the ropes on her hands using a broken branch. Finally able to give her shoulders some relief, she let her aching muscles sag for a few minutes before continuing forward. There was no clear path, this obviously wasn’t a frequently visited island, but the ungrowth wasn’t impenetrable, and Patton even managed to find an area of fairly open grass in which to rest before continuing forwards.  
The closer she got to the centre of the hill, the steeper her ascent became, until she was forced to walk on her hands and knees just to keep going. She knew that if there were others here, they would probably still be on the beaches and that was her next destination after making it up the hill, but she decided it would be best to make sure this was only the small, circular island she suspected it to be rather than something far bigger, with possible settlements. First, hill, then beaches.  
Patton woke up lying face first in the grass, unaware of having passed out in the first place. She couldn’t bring herself to move. How long had it been since she’d had something to drink? Two days. Even longer since she’d eaten. She realised with a shudder that it didn’t matter if she was alone or not, or whether this was a big island or a small one. If she didn’t sort herself out soon, none of it would matter. Thomas, Emile or Remus could be here and all they would find would be her body.  
As if her ears were desperately trying to keep her alive, she heard the babble of a stream. Half crawling, half dragging herself, she clambered through the undergrowth, pushing aside ferns and straight up crushing flowers as she followed the sound. As she passed the trunk of each tree she expected to see it, the river, the stream, whatever it was that was making that sound. She’d settle for a bog at this point. But it seemed to be getting further and further away. Stupid river. Running away from her. She just wanted a drink!  
When she did finally arrive at the banks of the river snaking its way down from the hill, she practically fell in it with enthusiasm. She couldn’t be bothered to lower herself down, so she threw herself into it, soaking her shirt just to get to the water.  
She gulped until she doubted there was room inside her anymore. She gulped until her throat was raw from it, until she couldn’t tell what pain was from her near-drowning and what pain was from drinking.  
Now she was just hungry. Her stomach growled at her, and she tried to think through the cramps that suddenly took hold. What could she eat?  
There was a river. Fish. She could get a net. It took her a moment to realise she had no idea how to go about making a net, or even rope, and she certainly wasn’t going to find one just lying around. Okay then, she could just use a fishing line. A stick and string - there was no string. And she didn’t have any bait, or a hook.  
She took a deep breath, trying to quench the panic that was threatening to overwhelm her. She had survived this long, she could continue to go so while keeping some sense of sanity. Fish weren’t the only food, she reminded herself. She was in a forest. There would be fruit and nuts. Hell, she could probably even eat bugs if she came to it. Or leaves, that was basically a salad, right? This wasn’t that bad.  
She cast around and her eyes fell on a pile of coconuts sitting at the base of one of the taller trees. It might as well have been left there for her.  
Not pausing to consider the idea, she waded across the river, pulling herself off the bank and setting on the nuts. It took her a while to pierce their shells, but once she had found a sharp enough stick she managed it. Not caring how much she spilt, she downed the entirety of the milk before scraping off the flesh and eating that too. It wasn’t much, but the more she managed to scavenge, the steadier her head became.  
It was only once she had made her way through the entire pile of coconuts that her hands stopped shaking.  
Okay, now it was time to come up with a plan. For now, she needed to focus more on surviving and less on whatever was meant to happen next. From the sun’s position, she judged she had at least five hours of daylight left. She could spend three of them walking and the other two building a shelter and a fire. That worked, right?  
She was tired, but not exhausted. It was more the kind of tired that would probably go away once she was up and doing things. Another few hours of walking would be enough to make sure she slept through the night.  
“That’s the way to think.” she said out loud to herself, just so she could hear a voice. It surprised her how much it shook. She sounded so sad. “It’s all going to be alright.”  
She hated being alone. Hated it with a burning passion. So she kept talking to herself as she continued up the hill. It was an endless stream of random thoughts, worries and decisions. She realised that it probably wore her out more than she would have been otherwise, and sometimes she had to pause her rant to catch her breath, but it helped. She would never admit to anyone how much it helped.  
“It’s all going to be okay. I’ve survived up until now, and I’ve survived much worse than this. At least no one is looking for me here. My parents would never search some desert island for me, I doubt they’d even leave New York. Why do they want me home so badly anyway? V said they were offering a reward, but the reward was for me dead or alive. Maybe they just don’t like the idea that I could spill their secrets. I wish they could understand that I don’t care about them enough to do that. I wish they would just leave me alone. Haha, alone. I’m so alone. I wonder if Thomas is looking for me? I refuse to believe he’s dead. He’s not dead. He can’t be; he’s too strong. What about Remus? I can’t remember if they bound his hands or not. If not, maybe he had a chance, but what chance was there really? It’s a miracle I made it. I wonder if I am dead. This all feels real, but who ever said that the afterlife doesn’t feel real? I guess I thought that you wouldn’t get hungry or thirsty in the afterlife, but look at me, getting hungry again already. I guess it doesn’t really matter if I’m dead, what changes? I’ll figure it out sooner or later. Either I’ll be stuck on this island for eternity, alone, or I’ll actually die. If I am dead, I am in hell. It’s not that I wasn’t expecting it, I just didn’t think it’d be so lonely. I thought Remus would be here. I'd like to see Remus again. God, what am I saying? I never thought-”  
She paused, her eyes fixing on something on the path ahead of her. It wasn’t really a path, more of a thinning in the undergrowth along the bank of the river she had been following.  
She moved closer cautiously, trying to make out what it was through the shadows of the trees.  
It was only when she was less than a metre away that she worked out it was a fish. A dead fish waiting for her on the path. Maybe she didn’t need the net, if the creatures were jumping out of their own accord, she thought with a smile.  
Picking it up, she hooked it onto her belt and continued along her path, resuming her senseless nattering. She could cook it later.  
A few minutes later, she came upon another fish, and then another after that. It was then that she got suspicious. She didn’t know much about marine wildlife, but she knew that dead fish didn’t jump out of rivers into the paths of hungry travellers.  
Turning slowly on the spot, she searched the surrounding trees. Now that she had cottoned onto what was happening, she did feel like she was being watched. The feeling stirred a memory, and before she could consider the idea, she called out.  
“Remy?” No answer. She hadn’t expected one. Why would the silver-legged pirate be here, leaving her fish? As far as he knew, she was dead. At least, that’s what she hoped he thought.  
She waited in silence for a moment longer, before turning and continuing her journey. This time, she had no real intention of making it up the hill. Whoever was leaving the fish would have to move when she did, if they were following her. If they were moving, they couldn’t be hiding.  
Doing her best to act inconspicuous, she continued to watch the surrounding trees, waiting for the movement she knew would have to come.  
When she did finally catch sight of something stirring, it wasn’t in the trees. She only caught it out of the corner of her eye, but she was sure she had seen it. Something big was moving in the river.  
Not hesitating, she knelt down on the bank and dropped her hand below the surface. The warm water soaked her up to her elbow, but she didn’t move.  
“Logan?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Remember to comment and tell me what you think :)


	10. Cities

There was silence. Staring into the depths, she kept her hand in the water, knowing something was there. She felt no fear; whatever was leaving her fish wasn’t evil, just unsure. If it was Logan, she doubted he wanted a repeat of last time, where he was stranded on the deck of the Crofter for the day before being able to make his escape.

“Logan?” she called again, trying to think of something that might coax him to reveal himself. “I’m alone.” He probably knew that already, who knows how long he’d been watching her for, but she felt the need to clarify it anyway. “I don’t want anything from you.” She continued, “There’s no need for you to hide.”

Still nothing.

She bit her lip, trying to work out what it was that kept the mermaid out of sight.

“Thomas is gone, and Remus and Emile. It’s just us, and I’d rather talk to you than just take your fish. It’s very generous, thank you very much, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you and I’ve been through a lot and now I’m thinking about it, it would be really really nice to know I’m not completely alone because I’m not sure how I’m going to be able to-”

A hand grasped hers. Letting out a sigh of relief, she pulled it upwards. Logan came with it.

He was just as she remembered: his face dark and intense, fins travelling up the length of his bare body, the great blue tail hidden in the water below him.

He looked at her with concern as he breached the surface, his head tilted to one side quizzically, as if trying to work out why her voice had broken at the sight of him.

“Are you okay?” he asked, slowly, shifting backwards to leave space between them.

“Yeah, yeah I am now.”

“You sound upset.”

“Sorry, I wasn’t sure if you were actually there, or if I was just talking to myself. If I’d imagined everything.”

“I was actually there. There’s no need to apologise; your suspicion was justified. Your body has been through immense trauma, it is perfectly plausible that your mind would play tricks on you.”

“Did you save me?” she asked, having not considered it beforehand. It made sense. She wasn’t sure how she would have survived otherwise.

“Yes. I was under the pirate ship the entire time you were aboard it. It took me a while to find you when you hit the water; you sunk fast, but I managed to get you to this island.”

“Did you save the Captain? Or Emile? Remus?” 

He shook his head.

“I would have only been able to save one of you. I waited for you.”

“Why?” She was shocked. She’d been last; he’d had the chance to save any of the others, why on earth would he wait for her?

“Why what?”

“Why did you save me?”

“Why not you?”

“Well, I’m not important. Thomas is the Captain, and Emile is smart, and even Remus-”

“You’re kind.” he said it as if it explained everything.

“They were kind too! They are kind and could actually do stuff at the same time. I’m kind and useless! I - I don’t understand. I’m not blaming you! Thank you for saving my life, thank you a hundred times over, I just don’t understand.”

Logan took a deep sigh.

“I could have saved any of the humans. I chose you because you exhibit a trait that I have not yet had the chance to observe. It was for purely scientific reasons.”

Patton felt her heart sink, but she didn’t let it phase her. Logan had saved her life, he was allowed to have his own reasons for doing so.

“What trait do I have?”

Logan hesitated, his eyes squinting as he studied her. “I think the most fitting word would be innocence.”

“Innocence? I’m not innocent! I’ve - done things.”

“Not innocent as in you lack guilt, innocent as in you lack corruption. Your human counterparts, consider their reaction when they look at me. The Captain first wanted to know if I was a threat, and then if I could be of use. The doctor tried to understand me, asking me why I spoke English, trying to work out the sort of world I came from. Even your sailor friend spent more time looking at my body than anything else. They all focused on the future, on what could happen now my existence had been revealed. None of them took the time to marvel at me. I looked at you and I saw happiness and amazement and fear. You asked me what my name was. You listened to the information I could have provided, you tried to make a joke because you wanted me to like you. You felt emotions I had never seen before, and I was determined to study you closer.”

“But the others, I’m sure they felt those things too.”

“Maybe they did, but if they did, they didn’t let themselves show it. If they had those feelings, they despised them because it distracted them from the logical and the efficient. I know because I do the same thing. The emotions you let yourself wallow in are distracting and damaging. I do not understand how one can go through life like that.”

Patton let out a little laugh.

“How can you not go through life like that? Doesn’t everything get boring?”

“No, because you are constantly looking for the purpose in things. How something can help you, how it could be damaging, what it means now that you’ve found it.”

“But not everything has a purpose!”

“Then those things do not add anything to life.”

“Okay, okay.” Patton crossed her legs and lent over the river, unable to stop grinning. She was going to prove the mermaid wrong if it was the last thing she did. “Why do you think we dance and sing and laugh? Because it’s fun and it helps us express ourselves and it means we can bask in the feelings that would otherwise be fleeting. It doesn’t do anything to help ourselves in anything other than that moment, but it doesn’t matter because it means that moment is the best it could be. Can you argue against that?”

“Your argument against the redundancy of emotion is - the existence of art?”

“That’s a nice way of putting it. What purpose does painting have, or writing, other than to let feelings be heard? When these things were first thought of, imagine what would have happened if someone went ‘on no, these things add nothing to my standard of living’. Life would be so much sadder.”

“I see your point. You see, this is why I saved you. You can show me perspectives that I doubt the others could dream of.”

Patton could see Logan relaxing. His tail waved lazily in the water below him, letting him bob a short distance away from her. She tried not to draw attention to how the space between them was slowly reducing.

“Tell me about where you’re from. Is there music and dancing? What kind of things do you eat? How are you different from us? Tell me everything.”

Logan looked confused again. It was really cute, how his mouth fell open and a crease appeared between his eyebrows. Patton resisted the urge to reach out and touch it.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, resting her head on her knees. She knew she had other things to worry about, like surviving the night ahead, but at that moment all she could think about was Logan.

“You’re so curious. That is a trait I would expect from neither mermaids nor humans. Mermaids are smart, humans are oblivious. They need to ask questions, but they don’t. You want to know about stuff that is neither useful nor relievent.”

“I want to know about everything!”

“And that’s what makes you different. I am not here to give you information about us, I am here to collect information about you.” He spoke almost regretfully, and Patton didn’t let his refusal stop her.

“How about this - for every fact you tell me about where you come from, I will tell you a corresponding fact about where I’m from. That way, we’re both learning. Sound good?”

“You do have a pleasant voice.”

“I didn’t - I didn’t mean my voice. I meant my idea!” she couldn’t stop smiling. “Thank you anyway.”

“Oh, okay. I’m afraid I struggle with human metaphors, and mermaid ones.”

That’s fine. So, tell me something about where you’re from! What’s it like?”

“Well, the mermaids have a single city, ruled over by a Queen. It is larger than any human city, but in total much smaller than the lands you walk. It is made up of hollow spirals crafted from stone found deep beneath the earth and painted gold to glitter in the water. Beauty is something my kind holds at a high standard.”

“It sounds amazing.” said Patton, her voice filled with awe. A great, sparkling city, miles under anything touched by man, swarmed with mermaids, their tales making colour in their home of beauty and riches.

“Now, tell me about your greatest cities. We are forbidden to go within sight of your shore, so this is a mystery to me.”

“Haven’t you asked anyone else about it?”

“Others have. You, and your crew, were the first humans to talk to me. In reality, I still shouldn’t be talking to you, I am not high ranking enough to commune with man, but I made the decision that this was an opportunity not worth wasting.”

“Such a rebel.” said Patton, winking at the no-nonsense mermaid, who had probably never broken a rule in his life. “Okay, so I’m from New York. I can’t speak much for other cities, I haven’t exactly travelled far, on land at least, but I assume most cities are kind-a similar. So, New York is made up mainly of really tall buildings, like really tall. Hundreds of families could live in one building, or there could be hundreds of businesses or meetings happening or whatever. They’re not pretty; there are no nice colours or anything, but it’s so impressive it kind-a makes up for it.”

“Do all classes live in a similar fashion?”

Patton giggled and wagged her finger.

“Fact for a fact, Lo. You tell me something else about your city!”

“Okay. In the centre of the city is the palace, where the most high ranking of mermaids, including the Queen herself, reside. It is extremely exclusive even to enter, let alone speak to her majesty. The most important decisions are made within those walls, we do not get a say until the final choice is released to the city.”

“That sounds kinda scary. You never know what your leaders might be planning to do?”

“We trust them. So far, we have had no reason not to. They have kept us safe; they are smart people. Now, how is class separated in your cities?”

They continued to talk until it got dark. Neither of them noticed the passing of time, both of them were too intrigued with what the other had to say. Patton hung onto Logan’s every word about the bizarre way of living below the city, the importance of the trade of fish, the intense educating system that was seen as the priority of the city. In turn, Patton shared everything she could think of about her human counterparts, and Logan pressed her for every detail, even the most insignificant of things.

“Oh my God.” Patton blinked, suddenly spotting the moon’s reflection in the water. “I need to make a fire! I’m going to freeze and starve at this rate.”

“My apologies.” said Logan, as Patton hurried to collect twigs and throw them in a pile. “I distracted you.”

“It’s fine. Do you have any idea how to start a fire?”

“Here.” Logan raised his hand over the water and dropped a small leather pouch onto the bank. “There’s a spell that can do it.”

“Spell? What, like magic? That’s a thing?”

Logan’s mouth twitched.

“I forgot the humans were yet to discover it. Yes, magic is real. We use stones and plants, with incantations, but there are many ways in which to use it. In the pouch is everything you need.”  
Patton tipped out the pouch. A collection of brightly-coloured stones and dried, bound plants fell onto the grass. She squinted in the dying light, trying to make them out.

“Find the red jasper, no - yes that one, and the Lobelia flower, the blue one, that's it. The jasper symbolises fire, and the lobelia is new beginnings, because fire is used to burn away what you regret.”

“I don’t want to burn anything, apart from the fire wood.”

“It’s more of a metaphor. It makes it so the fire does not burn anything more than we want destroyed. Put them on top of your fire, the flower on top of the stone - good. I will say the incantation.”

Patton shuffled away, watching eagerly as Logan fixed a steely stare on the fire and began to speak. His voice dropped low, fierce concentration and unnatural beauty in every word. It wasn’t a language she recognised, but it was still achingly familiar. Unable to help herself, she closed her eyes and let the spell wash over her, only opening them when the light of the fire fought through her lids.

“That was amazing.” She whispered, pulling herself close to it and letting herself relax into the heat. She hadn’t realised that she had been shivering. As Logan explained the spell, she cooked one of the fish he had given her.

“The stone and the plant will both be perfectly intact when I put the fire out. It will stay lit until I speak the counter-spell, so I will stay close tonight in case it is needed.”

“Okay.” Patton curled up, her back to the fire, facing Logan. He folded his arms on the bank and rested his chin on his overlapping hands. For a while, they just watched each other. Logan’s eyes dropped slightly, and Patton didn’t disturb the silence until she’d finished the fish.

“There’s something else I should tell you.” she said, at last.

“Hm?” The sound was so adorably sleepy, she had to swallow her smile before continuing.

“On the pirate ship, there was a man who knew about you. About mermaids. He made me promise not to tell the Captain about you, like he threatened me.” She avoided his eyes before continuing. “I accidentally said my name was Patton Logan, because they asked me for my last name and I panicked for some reason. That’s what tipped him off.”  
Logan was silent for a while before speaking. Patton wished she knew what was happening in his brain.

“Did this man have a name?”

“He called himself ‘V’, but he said that wasn’t his real name?”

Logan let out a long, dragging sigh. Patton blinked at him, surprised. “You know him too?”

“It’s probably Virgil. Was he dressed completely in leather, with weird, angsty hair?”

“Yeah, yeah that was him. How do you know him?”

“Let’s just say we’ve had correspondence before. Don’t worry, it’s not a problem. I doubt the two of you will ever meet again. I hope you don’t for both our sakes. He knows we spoke?”  
“Yeah, sorry-”

“No, it’s not your fault. He has no power over me. Go to sleep, Patton. I will keep watch over you.”

Patton couldn’t explain the trust she felt in Logan, she just knew that she was safe with him. With a smile, she let herself settle into the grass, enjoying the heat of the fire and the sound of the running water, and fell asleep. 

**** If the stone and plant magic system seems a bit out of place here, it is because this is what I'm using in my novel and I'd really like to get some feedback on it, so if you wouldn't mind dropping a comment on how you think it works and how it could be improved that'd be really helpful :)) ****


	11. Breathing

Footsteps woke Patton. For a moment, she panicked, before remembering the events of the previous day. It was only Logan. He must have gone to get more wood, or something like that. She kept her eyes closed, pressing closer into the grass beneath her cheek. Everything ached. Her throat, her chest, even her brain seemed to be itching inside her skull. The smell of the dead fire filled her nostrils, and the sound of the river was like a song lulling her back to sleep.

She didn’t think about what was going to happen next. Sure, she was lost on an island in the middle of nowhere, probably with limited survival resources, but she had food and water. She had fire and she could probably build some sort of shelter today. She had Logan.

The footsteps stopped, close to her. Still, she didn’t open her eyes. Part of her wanted to slip back into sleep. Part of her wanted to know what Logan would do if he thought he was unobserved.

Part of her felt wrong.

As much as she told herself there was nothing to worry about, something was definitely off. Frowning, she tried to work it out. What was so out of the question, so illogical yet unnoticeable, she couldn’t even think of it? It hit her like a brick. The footsteps didn’t belong to Logan; he didn’t have feet.

“Well isn’t this cute.” said an all-too familiar voice.

Patton shot into a sitting position, almost colluding headfirst with V, who had been standing over her. She shuffled away hurriedly, getting to her feet.

Logan was in the same position he’d been in when she’d fallen asleep. His arms were crossed on the bank, his tail waving lazily in the water beneath him. He raised his head to look at V, but there was no surprise on his face.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped, trying to put as much distance between herself and the pirate as possible without falling into the river.

He stood on the ashes of their fire, the red jasper she had used to start it dancing in his fingers. His hood pulled low once more, his hair hanging over his glowing eyes. The knives glinted from his belt, standing stark against the black leather. He regarded her carefully before turning to Logan, ignoring her question.

“You saved him?” The question was cold, almost as if V was telling Logan off.

“He has valuable information. I wished to question him further.”

“You were told not to talk to humans in the first place, let alone save their lives for the purpose of talking to them.”

“Says you. You aren’t meant to talk to them either. You don’t outrank me anymore, Virgil. This time, your word against mine doesn’t mean anything.”

Virgil smirked, crouching down at the water’s edge and dragging an idle hand up his own leg.

“You say that, Logan, but a lot has changed since you left the city. Sure, my rank hasn’t changed, but rank isn’t everything, is it? You of all people know that. There has been talk. Your fascination with the humans has lost you favour. After all, when it came down to it, who got the spell?”

Patton looked between the two, utterly confused. They were talking as if they were old friends - or rivals. She suddenly felt very useless and very small. What was she doing here, interfering with the affairs of mermaids and pirates? She just wanted to survive, to keep her head down and maybe, if she got the chance, to leave behind some sort of legacy. To help someone or create something. She didn’t want this.

Just as she was beginning to wonder whether she should leave, her own name snapped her back to the conversation happening in front of her.

“Patton.” Logan said sharply. “Leave. Go and hide somewhere; I will come and find you when it is safe to come out.”

Virgil let out a long breath, rising to his feet and turning to face her.

“What - why do I need to hide?”

“Because if you don’t, Virgil will most probably kill you. He thinks you have seen too much.” Logan’s voice was calm, but deadly serious.

“Don’t bother running.” said Virgil, his voice almost equally as calm. “You won’t get far.”

“Wait - so you are going to kill me?” She had never been threatened in such a non-threatening way.

“Of course. I can’t exactly have you running around telling all your friends you’ve met mermaids can you?”

“All his friends are dead.” said Logan, not looking at Patton. “He’s not leaving this island, I made sure it was far from any trade routes. No one is going to come looking for him here.”

“Trade routes? You really are going native aren’t you, Logan. You were asked to look at human behaviour, not memorise every single aspect of their lives.”

“I like to see things done properly.”

“I’ll say.”

“Um, look, Virgil.” started Patton, hesitantly. The pirate turned to look at her with a reproachful glare. 

“You can address me as Sir. That’s what the humans use for respect, right?”

“Yeah, okay, um, Sir. Look, I’m not going to tell anyone about this. I have no reason to leave this island; considering what I have to return to, I’m much safer here. You know that! You know who I am, and what’s waiting for me if I ever go back to civilisation.”

“You’re really struggling to get into your head how insignificant you are, aren’t you?” said Virgil, turning and striding towards her. She took several alarmed steps back and collided with a tree. “I don’t care if you’re going to stay here, I don’t care enough to risk you talking. Why should I show you any sort of mercy? You’re just a little human. Not worth the worry.”

“Don’t talk to him like that.” said Logan, quietly. With his back to Logan, Virgil smiled triumphantly.

“You’re not human, are you?” asked Patton, her eyes wide, meeting Virgil’s stare with genuine fear. “You’re a mermaid.”

He just huffed. It was like a laugh, but meaner.

“Of course I am. You humans are preposterously slow, aren’t you?”

“He’s only just learned about magic, Virgil. How is he meant to know a mermaid can have legs?”

“You told him about magic?” Virgil’s voice was suddenly deep and echoey. Unable to help herself, Patton shrunk against the tree trunk, looking around for somewhere to run too. There was impenetrable forest to her left, but if she could jump over the river, she could run back along the path she'd come down.

“He needed a fire. I had no choice.”

“So you saved the life of the human you were meant to let die twice? That really helps your case, Logan.”

Virgil seemed to have completely forgotten about Patton now. He rounded on Logan, a death-promising grin smeared across his face.

“I know you pretended to be all high and mighty, but I could see behind the mask, Logic. I could see you wondering why oh why had I been given the malachite. This is the answer: I know how to treat the humans, I know where we stand in proportion to them. No matter how hard you try to hide it, to suppress your emotions, your feelings will always be your downfall.”

As Patton watched, something cold slid into place behind Logan’s eyes. Something scary.

Not waiting a moment longer, she spun, throwing herself over the river and landing in the shallows on the opposite bank. Stumbling, grabbing hold of branches and vines to propel herself forwards, she pushed through the forest, trying to put as much distance as she could between herself and the mermaids.

The ground sloped down steeply below her, and she struggled to remain upright while managing to avoid the traps the forest seemed intent on setting for her. Her feet slipped from under her, and she fumbled to regain her balance. There wasn’t time to check for pursuers; each step required the utmost attention, but there seemed to be silence in her wake.

The sea came into view. She skidded to a halt, leaning against a tree to catch her breath. Each gasp sent a spike of pain through her raw lungs, but she forced herself to continue doing so. The sea wasn’t safe; no water was safe when your energy was a mermaid. The problem was, no land was safe either if the mermaid in question could magic himself a pair of legs.

She went to move forwards again, but as she took the step her body froze. Unable to move, she tipped sideways and landed on the sand, one arm stretched out awkwardly by her side, the opposite leg bent painfully in its attempt to walk. She strained against the invisible bonds that seemed to have sprung to life around her, trying to move something, anything. It didn’t take long to realise she couldn’t breathe either. Her windpipe, her lungs, everything was frozen. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t blink. As the seconds ticked by, more and more pain took hold in her, sending aching shivers through her bones, making her eyes water and her vision blurry.

“A little tip for next time,” came Virgil’s voice from out of sight, “When you discover magic exists, don’t bother trying to escape from the people who know how to use it.”

He spoke a line in the language Logan had spoken the night before. The gentle tongue sounded so much more menacing in his mouth.

In response to what must have been the counter spell, Patton’s body fell loose. She took in a shuddering breath, struggling to gather her senses. Before she could get back to her feet, Virgil was speaking again, casting a different spell. As he spoke, her vision went black.

* * *

Patton woke with a jolt. She was in a different clearing, but the same river flowed through it. Logan was watching her, concerned. His expression brightened when he saw she was awake, but the next moment it was darker than she’d ever seen it. She tried to draw away from him, but she was tied to a tree. She was starting to see a pattern where people tied her up and watched her while she slept, and she didn’t like it.

“Patton.” said Logan, softly, “I’m doing my best to keep you alive, but you’re going to have to work with me. We need to talk fast, okay?”

“Why do you care so much?”

“I - what?”

“You’re honour or legacy or whatever is on the line here. Why do you care so much about me?”

“If anyone deserves to live, it’s you, Patton. Now, I am going to try and convince Virgil to come back to my city with me, leaving you here. I think I have a pretty good idea of how to do it, but he might try and take you with us.”

“But - I’d drown.”

Logan shook his head.

“The same spell that gives him legs and means he can breathe above water could give you gills and a tail, if the counter spell is used. It is very likely that he will try to take you with us. Whatever you do, you are to resist. You kick and scream and do whatever you can to stop him placing the stone and the plant on your body. Unlike the freezing spell he used, he needs to make contact to change you. You need to do everything you can to stop him, you cannot go to the city. Understood?”

“Yeah, but I’m tied to a tree! How am I meant to resist? And why would he want to take me? And also, if you need the spell to breathe above water, how are you breathing now?”

“Cut the rope on his knife if you can. If not, just throw off the ingredients before he can chant the spell. Make yourself too much of a bother to worry about.

Secondly, he wants to take you because he believes you give him leverage over me. We have been - rivals for a long time. Not only are you something that could cause me disgrace, with the knowledge I have given you, but you are someone I - care about. You are powerful.

And finally, I can breathe because of a separate spell I used which allows me to breathe both above and below water. The reason I cannot have legs is because the stone used, malachite, is rare and guarded, only given to those who are deemed trustworthy enough to walk among humans while maintaining the secret of the mermaids. Is that everything?”

“Yeah, I think so. Don’t let him put the stone on me, try and get free."

“Correct. Let me do the talking. You’re very sweet, but you give too much away.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“No, it’s endearing. Quiet now.”

Virgil emerged from the other side of the clearing, his face tensing when he saw Patton was awake. His hood was pushed back now, and his hair seemed to be less intrusive on his face than usual. It made him look more real, less like a villain that jumped out of a picture book.

“You’re awake.”

“Virgil.” snapped Logan, drawing Virgil’s attention to himself. “I got a chufa. We need to return home.”

“What’s a chufa?” asked Patton, forgetting what Logan had said about letting him do the talking over her own curiosity.

“It’s like a twinge you feel when you are being summoned back to the city.” said Virgil, automatically, not even looking at her. “I didn’t feel one.”

“I’m pretty sure they’re only for emergencies. We should go.”

“I agree, for once. Is there anything you need to get in order?”

“No.”

“Good. We’ll take this one with us.” Patton tensed as Virgil leapt over the river and made straight for her.

“Wait!” Logan’s voice grew high in his panic. Patton screwed her eyes shut, knowing their plan was already on the brink of collapse. “Why bring him? What good is he? Just leave him, we need to move.”

“I think he’ll be plenty good, Logan. As you say, he has a truly exceptional mind, he has hope the likes of which I haven’t seen in mermaids or humans. It’s by no means impressive, but it is very different. I’m sure Janus would love to meet him.”

“No-”

“Unless you want to protect the human? Unless you think that revealing what you did to him was the wrong thing to do, and that we should kill him instead?”

Logan said nothing. Virgil shook his head, almost disappointed, before taking the final steps to Patton and dropping to his knees before her, drawing out his own pouch similar to Logan’s. Out of it, he drew a green stone and a pressed, orange flower.

Patton searched his body for the golden knives and realised with dismay they were missing. He met Virgil’s eyes and shuddered at the intensity of them. Virgil had overheard their plan. He knew everything. There was no escape. She strained against the ropes, trying to move her body as far away from Virgil as she could, but the bounds were tight.

The malachite was pushed against her, the flower held on top of it. Virgil began to cast the spell, his eyes glowing, fixed on her. She stared back at him, determined not to look scared, giving up struggling for the purpose of showing no weakness.

He smiled as he stopped speaking.

She gasped as the air left her lungs.


	12. Swimming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little bit of backstory for you lovely humans, enjoy and let me know what you think!!

Patton flailed widely against the ropes still holding her to the tree, gasping for air that seemed to have vanished. She could feel something changing, her body stretching and shifting. It wasn’t painful, but it was nothing like she had ever felt before. Black spots jumped in front of her eyes, and she began to choke, the rasping noises overtaking any ability to scream for help.

“Untie him!” shouted Logan from far, far away. “Untie him, Virgil!”

The ropes vanished from around her as the last of her vision ebbed away, but she couldn’t move. Who knows how long it had been since the spell had been cast, how long it had been since she’d breathed? All she knew was that she didn’t have long.

Strong arms wrapped around her and she slumped into them. There was nothing anyone could do to her at this point, apart from save her. Her body was dragged across rough ground. It felt as though she was observing through a blurry glass; the sensations felt like they belonged to someone else.

Without warning, sharp, cold water hit her. Had Virgil thrown her in the river, or was this death?

She was breathing. She was underwater, and yet she was breathing like she was standing in an open field. Patton opened her eyes.

The water was clear in front of her, the light shimmering through the surface over her head and reaching the rocky riverbed beneath her in glistening streaks. The new quiet bubbled around her, drawing her into a new type of calm. She took another deep breath, feeling the water explore her mouth before she exhaled, and the oxygen let her head level further.

“Patton.” Logan’s voice was as clear as it had been above the water. She looked up and locked eyes with him. He floated slightly above her, his face creased with concern. Unable to help herself, she lifted a hand and brushed it against his cheek.

Her arms. There was a fin on her forearm. It was made up of dark bones and lighter webbing stretched between them. Staring, she watched as she managed to flare it and fold it in, as if it were a muscle in itself. There was a matching one on her other arm, and - she had a tail. Beneath her, waving in the water, was a great, light blue tail. She tried to move it, and it fanned in response. Her legs were gone and there was a tail. A tail. A great big fish tail. Okay, this was new. Her breathing sped up. She found herself spinning in the water, trying to keep an eye on her new tail while searching her body for other changes. There were fins on her hips, dipping under her now-loose shirt, and on the sides of her face.

“Patton.” firm arms gripped her own, being careful to avoid the fins. Her head shot up and she locked eyes with Logan. “Take a deep breath.” He said, his expression intense.

“Underwater.” She whispered.

“What?”

“You’re telling me to take a deep breath underwater. I can breathe underwater. I can talk underwater.”

“Yes, you can. Virgil used the spell on you, you are now in the body of a mermaid. Don’t think about changing back, don’t think about what that means. Just repeat it to yourself. It is a rough change if you’re not prepared or accustomed to it, you need to take this slowly. Say it out loud for me.”

“I am a mermaid.”

“Again.”

“I am a mermaid.”

As she spoke it, the more real it became. There was a spell on her, and it had turned her into a mermaid. That meant she could breathe and talk underwater, that her body was covered in fins and that her legs had been exchanged for a scaly, sweeping tale. Somehow, summarizing it in her head made it seem less - big. She was still her, just in a different body. It wasn’t even a different body, it was still her’s, just different.

“Better?”

“Yeah.” She looked up at Logan again, and managed to smile. “Thank you.”

“Try to swim. Like this -” Logan flexed his tail gently, and moved through the water away from her, his arms floating at his sides. “The more control you have, the more comfortable you’ll feel.”

Biting her lip, Patton managed to turn herself until she was facing the same way as he had been and did the same. With one wave of her new tail, she was sent rocketing through the water, past Logan and into the deeper waters ahead of him. She opened her mouth to shout, moving her tail to try and slow herself but only succeeding in spiralling through the water as she continued to move.

Firm hands caught her, bringing her to a sharp halt.

“Gently.” said Logan in her ear, “You have a lot of power now, there is a lot of muscle in your tail. You need to use it as gently as possible, if you want any chance at controlling your movements. Here.” He took hold of her hand and stretched out their arms so there was distance between them, but he could stop her if need be. “Try again.”

Again, she flicked her tail, trying to exercise as much restraint as possible. She was still coming to terms with the fact that this was actually happening, but having something to pin her focus on somehow helped. That, coupled with Logan’s comforting grip on her hand, was enough for her to rein in her panic.

This time, her movements were much more controlled. It was less like swimming and more like floating with direction. The smoothness of it was something completely new to her; moving without stepping, simply allowing her environment to transport her with minimal prompting from herself.

“You got it.” said Logan, letting go of her hand when they’d moved slightly further downstream. Patton didn’t like the absence of his touch from her’s, but didn’t stop him moving away.

“I’m sorry, I said I’d fight Virgil off, but I think he heard us talking.”

“It’s okay, I didn’t expect you to. I just had to say something; it was better for you to have some sort of expectation of what was coming.”

There was a splash behind them, and they both turned to see Virgil rise from his dive, also now in mermaid form. He stopped when he was level with them and flashed a quick, cheeky grin. Patton was amazed at how different he looked below the water. His eyes were no longer glowing from the depths of his hood, but glimmering like two stones dropped into the river. His hair floated in the water above him, waving with each movement. He held himself more confidently, his deep purple tail moving sharply and precisely, the fins on his body opening and closing so he held himself perfectly steady in the river.

“A blue tail.” he remarked, his eyes travelling up Patton’s body. Even his voice seemed to have lost it’s sullen tones. “Interesting.”

“Light blue.” corrected Logan, his voice as tight as ever.

“Is that important?” asked Patton.

“The colour of a mermaids tail is considered by some to have a meaning.” explained Logan,

“Personally, I see no evidence of it doing so.”

“Well, if it does, what does blue mean? Light blue?”

“It means calm, concentration and compassion.” said Virigl, “It’s not common, among mermaids anyway. Humans are all very caring, aren’t they? Come on. We need to get to the city.” With one twitch of his tail, he swam past them, leading the way downstream towards the sea.

Patton felt Logan’s hand on her own again, and before she could ask him what they were doing, she was being pulled off after Virgil. At first, she thought she could swim alone; she didn’t need Logan’s help. When they entered the deeper water, however, and the bottom of the river disappeared from beneath them as they moved towards the ocean, she found it was a challenge to even stay upright.

“How are you feeling?” asked Logan, his gaze fixed ahead of them, “Any nausea?”

“No - I feel fine.” It was the truth; she had probably never felt better. She was moving with unparalleled ease, her body twisting with the water, her tail fanning out behind her. She was also finding it hard to put one thought in front of the other. Everything had happened so quickly and she had had no control over any of it, it was like being thrown in the deep end of the world’s busiest swimming pool.

“Do you have any questions?”

Too many to even begin asking.

“Uh, yeah. Is this - reversible?”

“Of course. You saw how Virgil changed between the two forms; you can do the same. It just requires the spell.”

His voice was so comforting. Decisive and straight forward, it was exactly what she needed. If she could, she would have closed her eyes and listened to him explaining things for hours.

“Did you really feel a chufa?” she asked, determined to keep the conversation going, asking the first question that came to mind.

“No. That was just a ruse to try and get Virgil away from you.”

“So what happens when we reach the city and he finds out you lied?”

“Most probably nothing. It will only make me look worse in his eyes when he realises exactly how much I have come to care about you. Lying is not seen as a negative thing in my culture, unlike in yours. We use it to get what we want. If you’re found lying, it reveals what you want, but that is the only consequence.”

Patton nodded. They had reached the sea; the river opening before them into an impossibly vast abyss.

“Patton, whatever you do, do not let go of my hand.” said Logan as they left the river and the floor fell out completely from beneath them. “If you get lost here, it is doubtful I will ever find you, and you will certainly die if we get separated. That is not me underestimating you; the ocean is a very dangerous place.”

“Okay, got it.” She tightened his grip on his hand and focused on Virgil’s tail ahead of them, the purple casting shadows on the water around him. “Can I ask one more question?”

“Of course. Never stop asking questions, Patton.”

“Hold that thought. What’s the deal with you and Virgil? Are you two enemies or what? Because sometimes -”

“Me and Virgil are complicated.” said Logan, “When we were younger, I guess you could say we were friends. He struggled with interactions because he was scared, I struggled because I found others tedious, so we ended up spending a lot of time alone together. Eventually, we decided we could go further if we worked together. I taught him all I knew, and he did the same for me.”

“So what changed?”

“Well, it got competitive, let’s say. He began to overtake me in the rankings, God only knows why. I guess the Queen took a liking to him. Anyway, I thought I deserved the advantages he was being given. The decisions being made about which of us was to move forward became more about likeability than suitability, so a rivalry grew between us. He thinks he is worthy of his position because he put more effort into the social side of things, where I think I’m more worthy because I can actually fulfill the role better.”

“What’s so special about Virgil’s rank?”

“Well, nothing anymore. We’re the same rank now; he just has more friends in high places. That’s why he’s got the malachite. We were both given the same orders: observe the humans. He was just given the tools to complete the mission with increased ease.”

“But you couldn’t repair the friendship, even now you’re the same level?”

“No. Things were said that neither of us could take back. I would still die for him, though, if need be.”

Patton blinked, surprised. She made sure to keep her focus on moving forwards, but couldn’t leave Logan’s confession unquestioned.

“You would die for him?”

“In a moment. I was in a bad place. I still would be without him. Because of his teachings, I am able to put aside my pride and my sense of right and wrong for what needs to be done. I guess you could say he taught me to care, and to put care into things.”

“That’s beautiful.” breathed Patton, unable to stop herself from smiling.

Logan chuckled. “Of course you’d think so. You know, you can take your shirt off if you want.”  
Patton’s smile faded. Normally, her shirt was tucked into her trousers, but her trousers sat on the riverbank back on the island, completely forgotten, and her white shirt hung loosely around her waist, floating in the water around her. If she took it off, there was no hiding she was really a girl. Of course, Virgil knew. He knew who she really was, but for some reason he had kept up her ruse all the same. She knew she shouldn’t really care; Logan wouldn’t, but she still didn’t want him knowing she was a girl. It would change things between them. He would see her as something that needed protecting, something that couldn’t think for itself. Now, he respected her, listened to her, liked her. Who knows what would change?

She didn’t reply to Logan, and he didn’t bring it up again.

They continued to swim for most of the afternoon, until the sun had dropped away and the water turned black around them. Patton let her tail propel her forwards, keeping her hand in Logan’s, and spent the time watching the scenery around them. They were low enough now that the seabed was in view. In some places it was decorated with fields of coral and beautiful flitting fish. In others, it was like a vast desert of endless sand and disregarded shells.

Virgil’s tail moved in and out of her line of sight, until whenever she spotted it winking into view ahead of them, she smiled, the sleepy thoughts replacing any anticipation or fear. Logan was an unwavering presence at her side. She probably spent most of the journey watching him.

“We’re almost there.”

“Really?” Nothing had changed in their surroundings. Logan nodded.

“There’s a giant gorge in the seabed. Like a huge scoop has been taken out of it. It goes on for miles in every direction. We’re approaching the edge. Swim slowly, you tend to come across it suddenly.”

They slowed their swimming, Logan’s grip tightening on her hand. The seabed of sand stretched on seemingly endlessly before them. Abruptly, as Logan had described, it fell away.

Patton ground to a halt as the city came into sight.

It was beautiful. Thousands upon thousands of giant curling spires jutted upwards, glowing with a mystical golden light, illuminating the water around them. Windows the colours of a million different jewels were set in the gold, the light shining through them sending sparkles of colour onto the surrounding water.

In the middle of the city stood what must be the Queen’s palace. It was huge, towering above all else, the very top of it lost in the dark water. It was shaped like a clawed, upturned hand, with it’s spiralling talons reaching for the ocean’s surface.

Among the spires and towers swam mermaids. In their hundreds, they moved through the city like a great shoal of magical fish, flitting from one place to another, their long, elegant tails glistening in the light. Some wore some kind of uniform, their black tops drawn close to their muscled bodies. Others wore layers of jewelry or loose scarves and shawls. Most wore nothing, but let their subtle bodies relax into the ocean around them with no shame.

Virgil emerged from the brink of the gorge within which the city lay. A sly, knowing smile rested on his lips.

“What do you think?” he asked, turning to face his city next to Patton.

“It’s beautiful.” she said, and it was. “It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

“It is, isn’t it.” mused Logan, his own voice soft. “I’ve never looked at it like this before.”

“You lied about the chufa, didn’t you?” asked Virgil. Patton tensed, but he didn’t sound angry.

“Yes. I’m sorry. I wanted you to leave Patton alone.”

“I understand. It’s nice to be home, anyway.”

“I agree.”

Patton felt warm at the pleasant exchange between the two of them. Perhaps there was a friendship still between them, frozen in time and ready to thaw. The warmth was chased away by Virgil’s next words.

“I think it’s time to go and visit the Queen.”


	13. The Queen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The music in this is meant to be something like Janus' theme if that helps at all. Enjoy!

Logan let go of Patton’s hand as they descended over the mermaid city. Instinctively, Patton groped after it, but ended up throwing herself off course and had to pause so as to righten herself in the water. Swimming was so much harder than she’d expected it to be; not only did she have to perfectly control each movement of her tail, but the opening and closing of the fins that now covered her body was paramount to maintaining balance and keeping herself going in the right direction.

Without Logan’s calm, steadying grip, she felt vulnerable. As if, at any moment, she could float away from the others and get lost in the endless ocean surrounding them. She took a deep breath. This wouldn’t be her downfall. She had survived pirates, the ocean and the wrath of a merciless mermaid. Swimming through a city and meeting some Queen would not be her end.

The idea of the Queen made her feel woozy. She obviously wasn’t anything like the British monarchs who sent faceless orders across the sea. No. This was a present, powerful leader, who wanted to protect her people. Logan and Virgil had both spoken of her like they knew her personally, like everyone knew her. Their words had been comforting, but there had been something else in their tones. Great respect, awe, even fear. Call it what you will, Patton didn’t like it. The idea that this woman, whoever she turned out to be, could control a city of people who would happily kill her was terrifying.

“It’s not normal for someone like you to be taken to the Queen.” said Logan, appearing beside her. “Virgil just wants to prove a point, that you’re not as special as I make you out to be. She will probably get annoyed at him for wasting her time and tell us to leave. Don’t worry, you won’t get hurt, no matter what happens.”

Patton shivered, still unable to shake the tension from her body.

“How can you be so sure of that?”

“I won’t let you get hurt. It’s my fault you’re here; I owe it to you to keep you safe.”

Patton couldn’t help but laugh at that. She reached out and brushed a hand along the tattoos on Logan’s stomach.

“Logan, you’ve saved my life too many times. You’ve probably saved my life in ways I don’t even know about. You owe me nothing, I promise you that. If anything does happen to me, can you promise you won’t blame yourself?”

Logan hesitated.

“No, I don’t think I can. What I want to do for you, it’s more than paying a debt. I want to keep you safe because I don’t like the idea of living without you. I know that we can’t stay even friends past this experience, it just wouldn’t work, but the idea of not knowing you are safe and there if I needed you is distressing.”

Patton knew it didn’t mean anything, Logan just valued her input on his studies of the human race, but she still smiled, feeling heat flush her cheeks.

They were swimming far above the sprawling city, making directly for the palace in its centre. Logan moved gracefully on her left, his face as impassive as ever. Virgil swum slightly ahead of her on her right, leading the way and steering them clear of any other mermaids. Patton didn’t fail to notice the odd looks they were receiving; it was obvious that the mermaids knew she wasn't really one of them, but she tried not to think about it. What did it matter if she was obviously a stranger? If what Logan said was true, she would be getting out of here soon anyway, and she got the feeling that Logan didn’t lie unless he needed to.

As they got closer to the castle, more of the details came into view. Patton saw that the walls were not really gold, but made of black stone encrusted with thousands of tiny golden seashells sparkling in the light dancing from the amber-tinted windows. There were no doorways; as far as Patton could tell the only way in and out was to swim directly through the non-existent roof, between the claws that reached up from the curved walls of the palace.

Virgil led their descent, with Patton following and Logan moving swiftly behind. She could feel the water parting to let him through at the end of her tail, and let herself relish the feeling. She wasn’t alone. Something told her that she would never need to fear being alone again.

“Halt!”

Patton whipped her tail round, flapping it wildly in an attempt to stop herself at the command of the fierce, uniformed mermaid who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. It was only Logan’s firm grip once again on her arm that stopped her spinning off completely.

“Sorry Kai.” Virgil fixed a smooth smile on his face, hovering perfectly in front of what Patton assumed was a guard. “We don’t have an audience or anything, but Logan very much wanted to show off his new human pet to the Queen, so many you could make an exception?”

“I - what?” She sounded completely caught off guard, and was staring at Virgil as if she expected him to reveal the whole thing was a big joke. Patton couldn’t help but smile.

“What’s so funny?” whispered Logan in her ear.

“The guard has been caught off guard.” Patton whispered back, smiling even wider now she’d said it outloud.

“Was that a joke?”

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

“Kai.” A voice called from below. They looked to see another mermaid emerging from the depths of the palace. They had dark eyes and wore a loose fitting orange hat that matched their short, flickering tail. “The Queen says to let them through. She has been expecting them.”

The guard, Kai, nodded and immediately swept to one side. Patton felt a sinking feeling at the fact she didn’t even question the order. So much trust, so much control.

Virgil continued swimming down, nodding to the orange tailed mermaid. “Thank you, Joan.”

Patton and Logan followed.

“How does she know who we are, why we’re here?” she whispered to Logan, unable to shake the uneasy feeling raking tension along her body.

“She was probably watching. There are spells for observation, and she has access to all the ingredients she needs. It is surprising that she had taken an interest in our interactions, however. This visit may not be as fleeting as I had originally thought.”

“But- that doesn’t bother you?”

Logan shrugged. “The length of the visit doesn’t affect me. It is the content that’s important.”  
“No, I meant doesn't it bother you that your Queen can watch you and you don’t even know it? Like you could be doing anything.”

Logan looked confused at the implication.

“I have nothing to hide.”

“But what about, I don’t know, privacy?”

“I have done nothing I regret, nothing wrong, so I do not care who is witness to it. Intimacy, secrecy, privacy, these are all constructs that I do not feel the need to participate in.” He paused,

“That is a very human need. Things are different here, Patton. I do not expect you to live by the differences, but it would help if you made an effort to understand them.”

Patton bit her lip and nodded, still trying to loosen up. She was having a hard enough time controlling her new muscles as it was.

They descended through claws of the palace into what must have been some kind of throne room. The first thing Patton noticed was the music. It emanated from a band that took up one side of the room, made up of mermaids all playing mysterious instruments. The sounds were quick and yet soothing, made up of strings and chimes. Dancers clad in shimmering red silks span through the water, moving in perfect time with each other and the music. The floor was dotted with tables around which more mermaids sat, discussing and eating, and spaced around the walls were more guards, all wearing the same tight fitting black shirts, making them all look threatening despite their brightly coloured, glistening tails.

Virgil led them to the floor of the great, cavernous room. They stopped their descent just above the smooth tiles, hovering at the same sort of height that they would have been standing. Patton couldn’t stop looking around; she doubted she would ever be able to take it all in. The dancing was never ending, as was the music. The blue ocean light that streamed in through the golden windows cast shimmering beams across the entire space. Mosaics made out of hundreds of precious stones were embedded in the walls, some of them making up pictures of mermaids, like some fantastical version of the sombre portraits that had decorated the halls back home.

Conversations stopped at their presence. The music and dancing continued, but the mermaids that had been sat around at tables now watched them in silence, their expressions varying from interest to anger. Patton couldn’t stop looking around at them, wondering what was going through their heads. Did they all see her as a human, the first human to be brought here? She felt like a rat that had been pulled into a mansion on a leash.

“Patton.” Logan’s voice was loud in the newly fallen quiet. “Look ahead. When Virgil stops, bow. Don’t rise until told to.”

Patton twisted towards where Logan was looking, and met eyes with the Queen.

It was instantly obvious that that was who she was. The Queen.

She sat high on a golden throne, her greeny yellow tail draped over the arm of it, a hooked staff grasped in her fist. She was completely naked, with long dark hair that flowed gracefully in the water around her. There was something different about her, something completely alien even amongst the other mermaids. Her glinting scales didn’t stop at the transition from her tail to her torso, but continued up, climbing her stomach and her chest in one long snake, even covering half her face and marring one eye.

A black crown sat proudly on her brow, like ink trying to float away.

Patton couldn’t tear her eyes away. She had never felt terror like it. And the Queen was smiling at her. Their eyes were locked on each other. Patton knew exactly what the Queen would be capable of, she knew it would take one word to end Patton’s life, and the Queen knew that Patton knew. There was an understanding between them, a vicious connection, and it was worthless. There was no escape for Patton now, no matter what connection she felt. The Queen owned her, as she owned every other life in this city. She was as good as dead.

Somehow, she managed to main eye contact as they made their way forwards. Ignoring the fear that pounded through her body, still stricken with the pain of almost-drowning, she stared fiercely at the mermaid Queen. She thought of Thomas, of how he had held eye contact with Prince Roman in the moments before his death.

One mermaid in uniform swam up to the Queen as they approached, whispering urgently in her ear. She waved him away, seeming not to even listen to whatever warning or request had been attempted.

They stopped a distance away, the situation respectful and fearful. Virgil, hovering a little ahead of Logan and Patton, bowed. He swung his tail round in front of his stomach, his head dipped low. To her left, Logan did the same, sweeping forwards. Patton followed suit, reluctantly breaking eye contact with the Queen for the first time since they’d seen each other.

There they stayed, waiting. The Queen was playing with them, exercising her power, waiting to see for just how long Patton was willing to suffer before she broke the rules. Gritting her teeth, Patton suppressed herself from doing just that.

Eventually, the Queen seemed to get bored with her game.

“Rise.” She commanded. Her voice was deep and slow, almost lazy. She was obviously sure of herself, she expected to be obeyed without question, and if she ever was questioned she was armed with an answer.

Patton unfolded herself, fixing her expression back on the Queen as if it had never left. The Queen was looking back at her, almost hungrily. Without breaking eye contact, she spoke again.

“Virgil, what have you brought me to play with this time?”

“Well, um,” Virgil sounded uncomfortable. He obviously hadn’t expected the Queen to pay Patton so much attention. It had all meant to be a ploy to get back at Logan, not to subject Patton to anything. “Logan thinks this human deserves to live with the knowledge of our civilisation. Not only did he defy orders by talking to the humans in the first place, but he continued to do so by not killing the human afterwards. He thinks that the human is worthy of life, and said he’d be willing to bring the matter before you to prove so.”

“I never-”

“Quiet.” The Queen cut off Logan before he could argue his case. Patton couldn’t help but flinch.

“There’s no need to say anything, Logan, I quite agree with you. Of course, this human shouldn’t be killed.”

Logan let loose a long breath. Virgil made a spluttering noise.

“You think he should live? But - our rules! We’ve killed hundreds of humans- why is he any different?”

“He? Virgil, you’ve brought me a human girl.”

There was silence. Virgil was probably speaking, or Logan, but Patton heard none of it. She was too busy trying to hear any one of her own thoughts as they pounded to her stomach and smashed into a million pieces. She felt like she had been stripped naked, the last bit of power she had left over herself had been snatched away. Virgil had already known who she was, but at least he had been making an effort to keep her secret. To have it shoved in front of everyone, ripped from her grasp without any warning, it was akin to losing ownership of her own name.

And Logan.

What would Logan think of her now?

“He - she’s a girl?” Logan’s voice cut through the panic. He didn’t sound surprised, he didn’t even sound confused. It sounded more like he was clarifying what he’d heard.

The Queen just smiled, showing too many teeth.

“Take off your shirt, Patton.”

Knowing she had no choice, that they would probably forcibly rip it from her body if she disobeyed, Patton fumbled to unbutton her shirt, letting it fall open to reveal the cloth wrapped around her chest. She wasn’t exactly busty, but the cloth made it obvious what she was trying to hide.

“So, now that’s all out the way, Logan, do you love Patton?”   
Virgil made another choking sound, turning away from them to hide his face. Logan didn’t twitch a muscle. Patton was still trying to stop herself spiraling out of control at the fact that everyone here seemed to already know who she was.

“May I ask why you’re asking such a question, your majesty?”

The Queen hummed and nodded.

“I’ve been watching you for quite some time, Logan. I’ve always found you interesting, I wanted to see what would happen when you got to finally communicate with the human race. It was me that made you swim into that net a week ago, you know. I wanted to see what you would do. I did not expect you to grow an attachment to someone as mundane as Patton.”

“She’s not mundane.” Patton blinked in surprise. Logan had changed her pronouns so quickly, so effortlessly, it was almost as if he didn’t care. “She is completely different to the rest of her race.”

“I know, I just wanted to see if you would defend her. Anyway, you then went on to save her life, talk to her for hours on end, spill every secret you had been taught to protect, stop one of your own brothers from ending her life despite both of your orders and bring her before me rather than admitting you were wrong about her. From what I know of you, you have never exhibited even friendliness towards anyone, your own species or otherwise, besides maybe Virgil in your younger days. I cannot think of a reason for this other than love.”

Logan was silent for a moment. Patton was incredulous. Logan had protected her because she offered him information on humans. She was something different, and she was an anomaly that might arise again. That was all. She was data in whatever study he was conducting, there was no way-

“I think I might love her, then, your majesty.”

What. What?

Logan turned to look at her, his gaze darting around before settling on somewhere slightly below her eyes. For the first time, he looked like he had let his guard down, like he was willing to let her see him for what he truly was. She still wasn't sure what she was looking at.

“Logan- you don’t mean that.

“I care for you in a way that I don’t think can be otherwise explained. The idea of never seeing you, talking to you, being with you, it’s unthinkable. I am getting wants I have never felt before. I want to hold you, to stroke you and comfort you.” His eyes brightened, his vision clearing as they looked at each other. “I love you.” He breathed the last words. They swirled in the water around them, becoming something final and absolute.

As Patton looked at him, and withheld her own urge to reach out and pull him close, she realised that he too was feeling something completely alien, completely knew. She had thought it was the awe of the fact that she had been speaking with a mermaid. She had thought it was her fear of the Queen or her unease around Virgil. Maybe it had never been that. Maybe it had always been a want for Logan to come a little closer, so she could hug him. So she could love him.

“Logan, I want you to answer honestly.” said the Queen, seeming to become bored of the staring happening between the two of them. “If I gave you the choice to become human. If I gave you malachite and offered you this without any repercussions, would you leave this city to live somewhere secluded with Patton, alone?”

“Yes.” This time, Logan didn’t hesitate. Patton’s voice was lost in her throat. She gazed at Logan, trying to understand the emotion that would push him to make such a choice. He would leave behind everything - for her?

Her eyes darted to the Queen. Her smile was terrifying.

“Well then,” She moved forwards, floating from her throne and drifting towards them, as if she couldn’t contain her own apprehension. “Let’s play a little game.”


	14. Logan's Chapter

Logan had been fearing what his feelings could entail for a long time. Of course, he hadn’t know he would fall in love with Patton when they’d first met. It had only been a few days ago, but it felt like years. He remembered finding Patton interesting, wondering what about him he found so fascinating, and then coming to the conclusion that he needed to find out more. He had warned the humans about the pirates with the soul intent of keeping Patton safe, so he wouldn’t be harmed for further observation.

But, with the Captain being the proud man he was, Thomas had failed to heed Logan’s warning and had sailed directly into the grasp of the Prince. Logan had watched with bated breath below the water as Patton had stood high on the mast and fought the silver-legged pirate, his sword flashing through the air, his movements careful and graceful. It had been then, when the future of Patton’s life had been so uncertain, that Logan had first gotten anxious that he felt something more than simple curiosity. Of course, he didn’t believe in love at first sight. Such a concept had always seemed silly. But, at that moment, he had never wanted to help someone as much as he had wanted to help Patton. He had never wanted to spend time with someone any more than was necessary to achieve a goal, but while he watched Patton’s life shift in and out of certainty, he wanted to embrace the sailor, to hold him close and to never let go.

For two days Logan had swum alongside the pirate’s ship, waiting for Patton to walk the plank or for the opportunity to make contact. From the safety of the water, he couldn’t see where they were keeping him, so he had waited. Patience had never posed a problem for Logan before, but when he was waiting for Patton he found himself getting more and more anxious by the moment. It was a retched, hollow feeling completely alien to him, and somehow he wanted more of it. He wanted to care this much again, and to keep caring this much. That was why he saved Patton, when he did finally hit the water. He wanted to find out what this strange new feeling was, and he wanted to feel it for the rest of his life.

Patton had almost died. That still shook him whenever the thought breached the steady walls of his mind. Patton had almost died. If Logan hadn’t gotten him to the surface in time, who knows what would have happened? Logan knew. He would have died. Logan hadn’t been prepared for the fear that hit him when he realised Patton’s death was a possible and probable outcome of the situation, and he hadn’t known what to do, so he’d succumbed to a useless and basic instinct. He’d opened his mouth and sung to Patton’s unconscious body. As he’d held him above the water and powered through the rough waves on his way to where he hoped he remembered there was a small, secluded island, he had sung, and as he’d left Patton on that beach, he’d continued to sing.

Logan hadn’t been sure why he had left Patton on the beach rather than taking him further inland, or why he had remained hidden for so long. There had been a strange feeling inside him, like a mixture of fear and excitement and hope. It had caught him completely off guard and left him unsure of what to do next. He hadn’t liked that at all, so he’d turned and swum away, trying to get his thoughts in order, only looking back once.

It was that look back that undid him. Patton was alone on the beech, spread out before the unrelenting anger of the sun, beneath the eyes of circling birds. He was so alone, so vulnerable, that Logan hadn’t been able to leave. Instead, he’d trod water a short distance away, and watched the boy sleep.

When Patton had awoken, dazed and confused and probably only half alive, Logan had felt an unparalleled relief. He had watched Patton stumble to his feet and stagger into the woods before ducking below the water himself and following. He’d left the coconuts for Patton, and later the fish. He didn’t want Patton knowing that he had saved him; he didn’t want the sailor to feel in Logan’s debt. He didn’t want to force Patton to feel anything like the feelings that were boiling beneath the surface of Logan’s skin, the very feelings that barred him from turning away from Patton then and there and leaving him to fend for himself.

But Patton had sensed his presence. Logan knew he was a fool to leave the food so obviously, but it was clear that Patton wouldn’t be able to continue without his help, so he had felt as though he had no choice. Patton had called his name, had dropped his hand below the surface, and as much as every logical sense within Logan had screamed to swim away, he had reached out and taken it.

They had talked through the evening and into the night, when Logan had shown Patton magic. He hadn’t even thought about it, the idea of hiding anything from the ever-curious Patton didn’t cross his mind. As Patton slept, warm and fed and safe thanks to him, Logan had stood guard, knowing he would never let anything happen to him, not knowing how he was going to do it, but knowing he would keep Patton safe.

Virgil had woken them up the next morning.

The sight of him standing over Patton, his knives ready in his belt, one of Logan’s own crystals in his hands had stirred unprecedented fear inside Logan, but he had contained it. For a long time, Virgil had been working to derail Logan. They might have been friends, but when it came down to it Virgil was more ambitious than sympathetic. If he could prove that Logan cared more about Patton than his mission, than his orders, he would win the dance they had been dancing for most of their lives. And so Logan had to endure it as Virgil threatened Patton, as he taunted him and trapped him. Of course, Virgil had no intention of killing Patton. He was kind at heart, despite what he let show on the surface, but it was still traumatising to bear witness.

Logan wasn’t sure exactly where he had slipped up, but it soon became apparent that Virgil knew exactly how much Patton meant to him. He knew this for two reasons. Firstly, Virgil would never waste a spell on a human if it wasn’t to prove a point. He could have thrown a knife and been done with it, but instead he’d displayed to Logan just how much control he had over Patton by using the freezing spell. Secondly, he had left Logan alone with Patton’s sleeping body. He had known how helpless it would make him feel, which it had. Virgil hadn’t checked Patton over; he could have been hurt or worse. Logan had had to resist the urge to pull himself from the river in an attempt to help.

When Patton had awoken, Logan had had a feeling Virgil was listening, which was later proved right, but he didn’t miss the opportunity to give Patton any kind of warning for what was about to happen. The last thing Logan wanted was for Patton to come to the city. The idea of the Queen speaking to him was sickening. The thought of him being inside a place that had bred so much corruption and hate was unthinkable, no matter how well it was hidden behind glittering gold. And yet the idea of leaving him behind was just as inconceivable.

And then Virgil had used the spell on him, and the unthinkable suddenly became very plausible. Patton was now trapped in the water. The entire time he was trying to calm him down, Logan had been panicking himself. How the hell was he going to keep Patton safe from his own superiors? From his Queen? She would set eyes on Patton and think one of two things. Either, she wouldn’t care and dismiss them instantly, or she would decide this was a game she wanted to watch, and would bring down hell upon them.

* * *

The same thoughts took hold when they stood, bowing at the Queen, in her throne room, and Logan realised that the Queen had yet to take her eyes off Patton.

“What have you brought me to play with, Virgil?” She simpered, and Logan inwardly cursed. The Queen was bored; she was practically itching for a game, and he had as good as delivered her one, prepackaged and ready for use.

Virgil spluttered some poor story, obviously twisting the narrative against Logan, but there was uncertainty in his voice. He also recognised the hunger in the Queen’s voice, and was regretting his decision to bring an innocent human into this. They both knew how ruthless the Queen could be, everyone did. Everyone apart from Patton, who was now staring at the Queen with every bit of ferocity he was receiving.

Logan made an attempt to contradict Virgil’s story, knowing that his words were his only weapons now, but the Queen interrupted before he could even begin.

“There’s no need to say anything, Logan,” She smiled at him, as if she could see right through him, and he wasn’t completely convinced she couldn’t. “I quite agree with you. Of course, this human shouldn’t be killed.”

Logan let out a long sigh. To anyone observing, it might have looked like relief. In reality, it was despair. If the Queen had just ordered Patton to be killed, Logan could have gotten him freed, gotten him out of there, shredded his own place and honour for the sake of the human he had fallen in love with.

The thought hit him like a whale.

Fallen in love with.

Did he love Patton? Was that this feeling? Was that why he wanted nothing more than to just be close to him, to see him safe and happy, to hear him call things beautiful and talk to him about his problems?

Virgil made a half-hearted attempt to argue, but it was the Queen’s response that caught Logan’s attention.

“He? Virgil, you’ve brought me a human girl.”

“He - she’s a girl?” Logan repeated, needing to clarify it. It changed nothing, of course, apart from the idea that Patton trusted him. Now he realised Patton had been lying to him, he could see how clear it was that she didn’t trust him, and why would she? He was something completely unknown. She had never had any positive experiences with any of his kind. Why would she want to open herself up to him? He had just presumed she was the type of person that trusted people. Still, it hadn’t changed his feelings about her. He doubted anything could at this stage.

“Take off your shirt, Patton.” The Queen ordered.

Logan looked back at Patton for the first time as she began to fumble with her shirt. She was pale, her lips cracked where she’d obviously bitten them in tension. Her fingers shook as she unbuttoned her shirt. He wanted nothing more than to reach out and hold her close, to tell her she didn’t have to do anything she didn’t want to, but he couldn’t. Every bit of affection he showed her was a weapon in their observers’ arsenal.

He didn’t need confirmation, the Queen wasn’t lying, but he still made sure to take in the cloth wrapped around her chest before turning away. He wanted Patton to feel like she wasn’t alone, and to see how he wasn’t fazed by her secret.

“So, now that’s all out the way,” said the Queen, her smile as rich and venomous as ever, “Logan, do you love Patton?”

Virgil choked, his eyes widening. Logan forced himself to stay still, to process the question, to work out what the Queen wanted from him. He knew his answer, of course. The real question was whether he wanted to share it.

“May I ask why you’re asking such a question, your majesty?” He asked, trying to display as little emotion in the question as possible. It seemed that, recently, he’d been getting lax with his boundaries.

The Queen nodded.

“I’ve been watching you for quite some time, Logan. I've always found you interesting, I wanted to see what would happen when you got to finally communicate with the human race.” As she explained how she had orchestrated the meeting between Patton and Logan, and how she had been watching them ever since, Logan became more and more fearful. Not of the Queen, he’d always known the depth of the power she possessed, but for the outcome of this story. It was clear that she was aware of his feelings for Patton, or at least she had strong suspicions. Now, it was the question of whether he should lie outright or try and be sly with his answer. He decided to go for the middle ground. He would be honest, but cast doubt over the situation. With any luck, the Queen might begin to second-guess herself.

“I think I might love her, then, your majesty.

He turned to look at Patton, trying to control the rapidly accelerating beating of his heart. He hadn’t expected the confession to feel this - exhilarating. Lying was meant to be tense, but speaking a truth for the first time? There was something completely new in that. He made himself look into her eyes, and as soon as he made contact with them he felt himself go loose. It was going to be okay.

“Logan- you don’t mean that.” she started, obviously shocked.

“I care for you in a way that I don’t think can be otherwise explained. The idea of never seeing you, talking to you, being with you, it’s unthinkable. I am getting wants I have never felt before. I want to hold you, to stroke you and comfort you.” The truths began spilling from his mouth, so fast he doubted he’d be able to stop them if he tried. It didn’t matter, he never wanted to lie to Patton again. “I love you.”

“Logan, I want you to answer honestly.” said the Queen, obviously trying to draw the attention back to herself, and failing. “If I gave you the choice to become human. If I gave you malachite and offered you this without any repercussions, would you leave this city to live somewhere secluded with Patton, alone?”

Alone? With Patton? Without any consequences?

“Yes.” he said, curtly. There was no need to think about it. He was willing to leave behind every sick, twisted thing he’d worked for for Patton. He didn’t need anything but her. Patton was gazing at him with disbelief. He kept his gaze firm, trying to show he meant every word she said.

Her eyes darted to the Queen, and he felt something drop from beneath him. This new feeling between them, this love, it was so fragile, and there was a hammer waiting to drop.

“Well then.” he heard the Queen move from her throne and screwed his eyes shut, waiting for the impact of whatever she was going to say. “Let’s play a little game.”

Logan looked at the floor, and took a long intake of breath. This - this was not going to end well.

“A game?” Patton sounded so scared. She was still glaring ahead, her jaw set, but her voice shook. Not caring what anyone thought, he reached out and took her hand, pulling her closer to him. She resisted for a moment, trying to keep herself steady in the water, but eventually managed to move closer to him while still keeping her defiant eyes on the Queen.

God, he really was in love.

“A game. I will give Patton three tasks, and if she completes them I will allow the two of you to go free. I will ensure your safety and I shall not observe you again after you leave the city. Your lives will be your own.”

“And if she fails the tasks?” Logan asked, letting his anger show in his voice. How dare she treat them like this? Why did she care what they did from here on out? Why did she get a say in it?

“If she fails, there won’t be a question of what happens to her. You, on the other hand, well I’ll drop you by six ranks and we can see where you manage to go from there.”

“You’re saying if she fails, she died.” He forced himself to keep restrained. No good would come from engaging in combat, despite the itching beneath his skin to throw himself at the Queen he had spent his life serving. Could love really change you that fast?”

“Yes. What is your answer?”

Logan opened his mouth to refuse, but Patton spoke first.

“Is this really what you want?”

He looked up, shocked. Her eyes were fixed on him, and they were full of fire.

“Do you really want to spend your life with me? Do you want to give all this up?”

“More than anything.” He spoke without thinking, and instantly regretted it. He should have told her he didn’t care, that he didn’t want her to do this. Before he could take anything back, Patton had turned back to the Queen.

“Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll play your game.”

“Brilliant!” The Queen rubbed her hands together before raising her staff and pointing it at Patton. “I’ll summon you when the first task is ready.”

Patton vanished in a puff of golden smoke.

Logan shouted, swimming to where she’d been a moment before and grasping uselessly at the water.

“She’s gone, Logan, don’t make even more of a fool of yourself.”

“What are you going to make her do?” He asked through gritted teeth, refusing to look at her.

“That is none of your concern.”

“What are you going to do with me?”

It was clear she wasn’t going to let him just swim away.

“Where am I going to keep you while your champion fights for you? Is that what you’re asking?”

He forced himself to keep staring at the floor.

“Yes.”

“In chains. Take him away.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed, remember to comment what you think!


	15. Kiddo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some Virgil and Patton time for you lovely people. I'm really busy at the moment so I'm sorry if I start posting less regularly. I'll try and stick to every other day but I can't promise anything.

Patton materialised in what resembled a bedroom, except there was no door. A prison, then. A large, double bed took up most of the space. A table complete with two chairs sat under an amber tinted window. From the view, it looked like she was still in the palace, towering over the rest of the city, but she knew better than to trust her eyes. That too could be a spell. On the other side of the room there was a fire burning in what looked like a glass bubble. When she looked closely, she could see the red jasper sitting atop the wood, keeping the flame burning forever. The room was comfortable and lavish, but Patton wasn’t fooled. This was a prison.

She took a seat on the side of the bed, moving her tail round next to her and trusting her own weight to hold her against the grip of the water. Was there even any point trying to work out what had just happened? She was still coming to terms with what Logan had said. Did he really love her, or was it some other plan to trick the Queen? Did she really love him? The answer to that question wasn’t in doubt. Yes, she loved him. She wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of her days talking with him, or even just being with him. And if he really loved her - well, then she would have been stupid not to accept the Queen’s challenge, right? It was a chance for them to be in love, rather than just knowing that they were. It was a chance for them to start again, and for everything to be alright. The Queen wouldn’t set her impossible tasks, that’d take all the point out of it. At least, it would take the point out of having three tasks. Maybe the first two would be hard and the last would be impossible-

No. She wasn’t going to think about that. She needed to keep her focus on what she needed to do, and that was survive and complete the tasks. It didn’t matter if they were impossible, she could do them anyway. She needed to be positive.

It was eerily silent in her new prison. After spending time in that beautiful music, and before that the comforting rumble of the ocean, being inside silent walls felt strange. And she was alone again. Why was she always alone? Why was the world so intent on separating her from anyone who she might consider a friend, or more?   
She hoped Logan was alright. The Queen hadn’t acted hostile towards him, but Patton knew instinctively that she was a master of Deceit. It was up to her what information she dangled in front of them, and there was nothing they could hide from her. She had eyes everywhere.

The thought of it made Patton tense.

She looked around, as if she’d see the Queen’s eye floating in the water above her, but she still appeared to be alone.

“I’m not afraid.” she said, out-loud. To anyone listening, it would have looked like she was talking to herself, and she probably was, but she had a message she needed someone to hear, even if it was just herself. “I’m not afraid and I know what I’m going to do. I love Logan, and no one is going to stop me from showing that. Even if I die, I’ll die knowing that I loved Logan, and that I fought for him, and maybe someone else who knows what love feels like will realise it shouldn’t be used for games. It’s dangerous to mess with a force that powerful.”

She didn’t mean to sound that cheesy, but she kept her voice low and hollow. With any luck, someone was listening, and they were quaking in their scales.

What was she going to do now? Her first thought was to try and escape, but what good would that do? She was the outsider here. She didn’t know her way around, and even if she did she was in what felt like a completely new body. There was no chance she was finding Logan and navigating through a city of mermaids without help, but she had none.

Okay then, escape wasn’t an option. What now? She should try and prepare for these tasks. She’d come far, the choice was succeed or nothing. There wasn’t a chance in hell that she would allow herself to fail again, not now. It felt like she’d been given a second chance, it had felt like that ever since she’d signed up as a deckhand on the Crofter, and she wasn’t going to waste the chance for anything.

Still, she had no idea what sort of tasks were awaiting her. Would it be like an exam? Should she try and find a book to read? Or would she be made to fight some strange underwater beast? Should she practise sword fighting? With that realisation she suddenly became aware that there was nothing she could practise with in the room. No books, nothing she could use as a sword, just a bed and a table.

This was going to get boring.

As if some great weight had suddenly come upon her, she felt herself getting tired. Her eyelids dragged down, her body becoming a hindrance. Tipping backwards, she hit the pillows and sunk into them, enjoying how the water enveloped her, pulling her into its arms so she couldn’t possibly be more comfortable.

Sleep stole her away.

* * *

“Patton.”

The deep voice hissed from the darkness. She curled into herself, trying to ignore it. Eventually, whoever it was would get bored and go away.

“Patton wake up.” She felt a hand brush against the fins on her arm and sat bolt upright. It felt like someone had just tickled the bottom of her feet.

“What the hell!” She was floating several feet above the floor, having floated out of the bed and across the room. Virgil swam below her, lowering his hand from where he’d touched her fins. The room was drowned in darkness, but his ghostly eyes gave away who she was.

“Your fins are sensitive. It’s a good way to wake someone up.”

“Why did you have to wake me up?” she grumbled, letting herself float back to the floor and stopping when she was level with him.

“Because you’ve been asleep for days, because you need to prepare for whatever Janus wants you to do, and because if you don’t complete these tasks my best friend’s life is over.” His voice cracked and he hurriedly turned away from her.

She struggled to compute everything he’d just said. She’d been asleep for days? It felt like she’d just woken up from a coma - but what did that mean? Who was Janus? And why was Virgil so upset over someone who was supposed to be his rival?

“Virgil, it’s okay.” she said, softly, “I have no intention of failing the tasks. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sleep for so long-”

“It wasn’t you.” He sniffed, obviously trying to recover his usual ‘cool’ facade, “I’m pretty sure Janus cast the spell.”

“Who’s Janus?”

“The Queen. I call her Janus because, I don’t know, it takes away her power. She orders us to address her as ‘her majesty’ and I refuse. Only in private, of course, but she knows.”

“She seemed to trust you.”

“She wants me to think she trusts me, so I’ll start trusting her back. That’ll never happen though.” He chuckled bitterly.

“Tell me what’s been happening.” asked Patton, not wanting to waste any time. The Queen - Janus - could be watching right now. “What do you know about the tasks? Can you help me at all? What about Logan, is he okay?”

“Logan? I have no idea where he is. After she sent you here, she gave the order for him to be taken away ‘in chains’, which is all wrong. We don’t do that here, we never have, at least.” He sounded almost despairing, “We don’t do arresting people, with prisons and chains. If someone does something wrong, their rank is lowered and that’s it. I have no idea where he could be.”

Patton nodded, looking away.

“He’ll be okay, right?” She was speaking more to herself than Virgil, but she wanted his reassurance anyway. “I mean, he’s so smart and calm and everything. He’ll be okay.”

“God, I hope so.” Virgil’s tone sent shivers of worry up Patton’s spine. “His whole life, he’s been so focused on not getting things wrong that I doubt he knows what to do when things do go wrong and he can’t do anything about it. He’s got a temper, and he panics. I’ve only seen it a few times, but it’s - it’s scary. I wish I could be with him. God, I’m such an idiot.”

“You really care, don’t you?” Patton asked, softly, not wanting to aggravate him. This was the first time he’d been anything but aggressive towards her, and she didn’t want to ruin it.

“Of course I care. I’d be nothing without him, and he’d be the same without me. I’ve watched him grow because of things I taught him, and he’s done the same. I regret what happened between us, of course I do. Whatever we have between us now, I know he would happily die for me, and I’d do the same for him.”

“Then why? Why bring me down here, threaten me, do all of this?”

“I got carried away. When things went downhill between us, he said things, we both did, and there was no excuse. We spent so long learning to trust each other, building some sort of friendship, but when it came down to it it was so fragile. I was too scared and he was too smart, we both knew precisely what weapons would hurt the other the most, and neither of us spared any expense. When you said your name was Logan, when you admitted you knew him, I started having ideas of how I could get back at him, and it went too far. I never meant to take you down here, but then I heard him warning you that I might try and I couldn’t resist the idea. I never thought anything like this would happen-”

“It’s okay, I don’t blame you. I understand, you wanted payback. Anyone would. Trusting someone and having them throw it back in your face like that, it’s not right.”

“I gave as good as I got. But it’s even worse than I thought. He loves you. He actually said that he loves you. He’s never said he’s so much as liked anyone before. He’s never wanted to spend time with anyone, talk to anyone, I just always assumed he wouldn’t be able to love.”

“You think he was telling the truth, then? He said lying is different here.”

“He was telling the truth. He’s a terrible liar, and I know him too well. He really does love you, and he’s locked up somewhere, and I’ve got to clean up the mess I’ve made.”

Patton nodded. Slowly, she reached out and put a hand on Virgil’s shoulder, rubbing a thumb along his pale skin. He closed his eyes, cutting out the ghostly light of them. Again, Patton was taken with how different he looked under the water, with his hair out of his eyes and his hood thrown back. He looked so young, so scared and full of life.

“Thank you for coming.” she whispered, not wanting to say the wrong thing.

“I had to come. This is all my fault.”

“No it’s not. Logan shouldn’t have done what he did, and you shouldn’t have either. I know how these things can spiral out of control. You know that I do. You chose to realise you took things too far, and you came here, so I want to thank you. I promise you, I will complete these challenges. Janus can’t hold me back, and she can’t keep Logan from me. I’m helpful for any help you can give me, but I promise I can do this.”

Virgil turned to stare at her. His eyebrows were creased, his mouth a firm line. She wondered if she had said something wrong, but then he smiled. Something told her that the expression was a rare sight on his face.

“I see why he finds you so intriguing.”

Patton couldn’t help but smile back.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re so sincere. You feel things so thoroughly. I feel like that’s something we have trained out of us. I understand why Logan fell for you, but why did you fall for him? You follow your heart, I doubt he even has a heart.”

“You’re wrong there. Logan feels things just the same as everyone else, he just doesn’t see the need to express his feelings. And that doesn’t matter, because he’s happy to talk about feelings, in different ways. It’s strange, but he makes accommodations for me and I can do the same for him. He’s following his heart now, isn’t he? I doubt his head was telling him to give up everything he worked for so he could be with me.”

“Hm, yes I see your point. You are perfect for him.”

Patton felt herself blush.

“Really? You think so?”

Virgil huffed and rolled his eyes.

“He needs someone to stop him completely turning into a robot. Now, about these tasks. Janus is advertising it like a sports game, she’s inviting anyone who wants to to come and watch, which is bad. Nothing like this has happened before, so I have no idea what to expect and she’s doing a great job in keeping me away from all of it. From the way she’s broadcasting it, it sounds like it’s going to be exciting, so I’m thinking maybe some sort of fight.”

“I had that thought, but I also thought she wouldn’t want to, you know, kill me before the final task.”

“Yeah, but she could order her guards to fight you but spare your life if they defeat you. Wanting you alive is no guarantee of anything. So I brought you this, you can practise.” From within the depths of his leather cloak, he drew a cutlass. It wasn’t the same as the one Patton had used before, it was a bit bigger and made of gold, but it was certainly something that could be useful.

“I hear you’re okay with these things. I stole it from Roman’s ship.”

“I’m okay, thank you! What do mermaids fight with?”

Virgil grimaced.

“Magic, really. We do a lot of things from a distance. Close up, probably swords or fists. Try and, I don’t know, get into as much shape as possible. The spell that I used to change you into a mermaid in the first place should've added some muscle, but working out won’t hurt. The sword will be a bit different underwater; there’s more resistance, but practise will help. Someone will probably come in with food soon, you’ve not eaten for days. Make sure you keep the sword hidden.”

“Okay, yeah I will. What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to keep looking for Logan, and keep trying to find out what Janus is planning. I’ll come as soon as I’ve got news, but if you don’t see me again either I’ve been killed or nothing has changed.”

“Those are two very different scenarios, Kiddo.”

Virgil blinked at him, surprised. Patton laughed, awkwardly.

“Sorry, that just kind of slipped out.”

“I’m not a child.”

“I know, but there’s nothing wrong with being scared.”

“I’m not scared.”

“Yes you are, and that’s okay. Your friend is in danger, and your own position is probably at risk. Don’t pretend to be brave and happy when you’re not. Repression is unhealthy, you know.”

“I think you need to take your own advice.” said Virgil, knowingly, before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Patton let the smile slip from her lips. She took the sword and began to practise swinging it through the water. It was certainly harder, but with each stroke she got more power behind the movement. She practised through the night.


	16. Think!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was fun to write.

Over time, Patton got into a rhythm. The mermaids who brought her food came randomly through the day and obviously expected her to be asleep when they arrived, so she used this to her advantage and spent the days sleeping and the nights training, hiding the cutlass under the bed when it wasn’t in use and acting bleary whenever she ate, as if she was still under Janus’ spell. Every so often, she got the urge to try and fight her way out, to attempt to overpower them, steal the crystal pouches they wore at their belt and try her luck, but she knew such a venture would be hopeless. Still, it was a nice scenario to picture.

She spent the nights training. As Virgil had warned, moving the sword was much harder underwater, even if the blade was thin and sharp. It took a lot more muscle work, so she divided her nights into two halves. For the first half, she practised with the weapons, sweeping it towards the post of her bed and spiking it forwards with as much strength as she could muster. For the second half, she worked on her body. Most of the exercises she’d done as a human, press-ups, running and lifting things, were a lot less effective underwater, as a mermaid. Instead, she worked on swimming fast and precisely, using her new fins to her advantage and controlling the threatening power of her tail. For her arms, she practised punching the pillows. It probably wasn’t very effective, but gradually she felt herself getting stronger.

Whatever Janus was planning for her first task, it must have taken a lot of preparation. Patton scratched a mark on the wood of the bed for every day that passed, and soon the talleys had built up to the high teens. She’d expected to be here for a week, at most, but it had been almost three.

Virgil had reappeared twice. He still had no idea what the task was going to be, but he had reported that Janus had built a huge stadium on the outskirts of the city where it was meant to take place. Now that Logan was out of the way, and thus the tension had been sucked from the air, Virgil was actually turning out to be a pleasant companion. He spoke in a light, airy voice with a dark sense of humour and an obvious hatred for anything in any way inconvenient, which Patton found needlessly hilarious. He wasn’t the sallow, glaring man she had first met on the pirate ship, but more of a boy who had spent his whole life wondering if he was doing the right thing, and still wasn’t completely convinced.

The time they spent together was fleeting but memorable. Virgil had taught Patton the sounds of certain spells so she could be braced for whatever they could entail rather then being completely defenceless, and during his visit had managed to give her the date of her first task. It was in three days time from the visit, or so Janus was advertising.

Today.

Patton had been pacing the room since the sun had turned the ocean outside her small, amber window a lighter shade of blue. She had made herself sleep the night before, knowing she would need her strength, but now she felt like she’d drunk too much coffee when she should be sleeping. Adrenaline mixed with her messed up sleeping pattern was pounding through her, and it probably wasn’t the best recipe for whatever was waiting in the day ahead. She had assumed it would be a fight, that was the only scenario they had known how to prepare for, but she truly had no idea. It could be anything.

Two guards materialised in front of her, the golden smoke vanishing into the water to reveal their close cut black shirts and the spears held in their hands. Patton recognised them as the two who had been guarding the palace when they had first entered, Virgil had called them Joan and Kai. Patton inadvertently shrunk away from them. For all her planning, she hadn’t prepared for the fear that she would inevitably feel when the task finally presented itself to her.

Wordlessly, but casting unsure glances at each other, they moved forwards and took hold of her, effortlessly clasping her in an iron grip. Her heart sank. For all her training and effort, it would have taken years for her to reach anything like the strength that the mermaids exhibited. If she was fighting the guards, she was screwed, and if she was fighting something worse, as Virgil had theorised, she was double screwed. Maybe even triple screwed.

“Okay, look guys, you get you don’t have to do this right?” she stammered. She’d managed to work something on Virgil and Patton, maybe it would work on these two as well? Maybe she was some kind of mermaid charmer? “You could just let me go, because I’m really scared right now and I really just want to go home. Your Queen, she’s taken everyone I care about away and I’m so lonely and I just want to be safe again-”

“What are you talking about?” asked one of them - Joan - in a surprised voice. She blinked up at them. Could this actually have worked?

“I’m, I’m begging you. I really don’t want to do this. I’m so scared.” She really was. Her voice shook, no matter how hard she tried to control it. Her heart was beating faster with every moment that they stood holding her. She might be communicating it a little obviously, but most of it was genuine fear.

“Humans are weird.” said Kai, dismissively. “We don’t want to hear your snivels.”

“Look,” Joan’s voice was calm, but firm. “We cannot disobey orders. That’s dangerous, okay? We’ve not done this before, stuff like this doesn’t really happen.” Virgil had said as much. “Logan will be okay. He’s got too many people who consider him a friend for him to get hurt, only he doesn’t really realise that.”

“He doesn’t think he has any friends.” said Patton, trying to coax more out of them.

“No, he doesn’t, but he’s helped a lot of people with their problems. He doesn’t understand the power his actions and his long blunt words can have on people, but things that come obviously to him are gifts to others. He’ll be okay, and I doubt the Queen will face you with anything she doesn’t think you can handle. She’s not a killer.”

“No, she’s far worse than that.” said Patton, sadly, as Kai began to chant another teleportation spell and they vanished in a puff of golden smoke.

They reappeared in the middle of the stadium.

Patton gazed around in horror. It was like a great amphitheatre, with rows and rows of stone seats crammed full with a multitude of glistening mermaids surrounding her in all directions. Janus’s seat was easy to pick out. She had her own golden box, surrounded by black-clad guards high above everyone else. On her left was Virgil, his purple tail twitching anxiously, the motion even visible from this distance. On her right was - was that Logan? It was too far away to make out who exactly owned the dark blue tail next to her, but she hoped it was Logan. She hoped it was and she hoped it wasn’t. On one hand, it would mean he was okay, and that the Queen hadn’t locked him somewhere terrible and thrown away the key. On the other hand, it would mean he had to watch as she was ripped to pieces, which she considered the most probable outcome of the events that were to follow.

On the other side of the stadium, opposite the Queen’s box, there was a doorway. Two huge stone doors were closed, but it was obvious that something was waiting on the other side. Deep, growling breaths filled the water around them. A screeching noise brought Patton’s hands over her ears; it sounded like something very sharp was being dragged across the stone.

There was a clattering sound, and Patton looked down to find a selection of weapons had been left on the stone floor in front of her. Or rather, had been magicked in front of her, instead of left. There was a spear, a cutlass, a thicker, heftier sword and something that looked like a cross between a kitchen knife and a hammer. Humming to herself, she let her eyes glance across the selection before going for the cutlass. It probably wasn’t the best choice practically, but it was the only thing she had practised with, and she wasn’t taking any chances.

The sword was once again different in her hands. To her surprise, this one was far more suited to her build and strength. It moved almost effortlessly through the water, the sharp blade cutting through with ease, meaning she could use less energy using it and put more strength behind the blow. She wouldn’t have put it past Janus to give her a massively oversized blade just to humiliate her further, but it seemed the Queen was feeling some pity. The idea of it made Patton dread what she was about to face even more.

“Merpeople.” Janus’ voice boomed over the stadium, magically amplified. The crowd roared in response. That was one thing in common between people and mermaids, they all went crazy for any form of entertainment, as long as they weren’t on the receiving end. “Tonight we witness the strength of a great, powerful human. According to one of our most loyal, Patton is worthy of our secrets, of knowledge of magic and of our world. Surly, such a trustworthy creature must have strength unimaginable for the likes of us.” Sarcasm was practically dripping from the Queen’s voice, and the crowd lapped it up with a mixture of boos and laughter.

Patton gritted her teeth and forced herself to focus on the doors. At any moment, whatever monster she was being made to fight could burst through. She needed to be ready.

“Fighting her,” continued Janus, her grin still evident in her voice, “We have our city’s mightiest beast. A creature whose strength is only matched by her massive intellect. Everyone, please give a huge welcome to the dragon witch.

Patton blinked, but didn’t let the familiar name throw her off. The pirate ship must have been named after something. She was about to find out what.

The two great stone doors slowly slid open, to tumultuous applause from the crowd. Patton swum up a little, so she would be roughly level with whatever emerged. She wasn’t going to hide or cower. She could do this. Even her thoughts sounded pitiful.

The dragon witch surged into the light.

It could barely fit through the giant doors, it was so colossal in itself. Red scales, each the size of a dinner plate, interlocked across its whole body, giving it a full set of unforgiving armour. It’s wolf-like head locked onto Patton instantly, intelligent eyes narrowing as they fixed on her. Steam burst from its snout, quickly vanishing in the water, but leaving a pointed threat. This creature had been built to kill.

As more of it came into view, Patton decided she might as well already be dead. It’s body was slender and long, with four muscular legs holding it high above where Patton floated and each foot armed with claws as long as the masts of a ship. It’s tail whipped round it, the strength behind it evident and terrifying. Patton couldn’t help but whimper.

Moving slowly, savouring each precise step, it began to circle her. She moved with it, trying to keep as much of it as possible in her line of sight, which was hard when the full length of the creature finally emerged from the doorway. Easily, it could circle her. It could probably circle the entire stadium.

She had been practising holding herself steady in the water, she was a lot better than she had been, but the dragon witch was so powerful and so streamlined that she doubted anything would be able to move faster than it. How was she meant to survive this?

Janus was speaking again. Patton forced herself to listen, hoping to hear something useful.

“As you all know, we use crystals, plants and chants when we cast spells. The dragon which uses a completely different form of magic altogether. Instead of using words and ingredients, she harnesses the very power of the elements and twists them to do her bidding. It’ll be oh so interesting to see how our amazing human, Patton, deals with such extraordinary magic.”  
Patton gritted her teeth. Maybe the plan had been to kill her off at the first task. She had assumed the Queen would want her game to last longer, but it seemed she had assumed wrong.

Taking Patton by surprise, a large chunk of stone collided with her and she was thrown to one side. Her head spun as she shot through the water, fanning her tail in an attempt to stop herself, but too dazed to even realise what was happening until she’d managed to bring herself spinning to a halt.

What the -

A large chunk of the floor had been moved, and had now landed a distance away. That was what had hit Patton. Rubbing her side where the rock had made contact, her eyes rose and once again connected with the dragon witch. She realised what had happened. The dragon had magically thrown the rock at her. ‘Harness the elements’? It was more like using the elements as her pieces in a game of chess.

The dragon cocked its head to one side, as if to ask her mockingly if something was wrong. Unable to suppress a snarl, she lifted the cutlass again and forced herself forwards. It was fight or be pummelled to death with effortless rocky blows. She knew which one she wanted to choose.

Something stopped her in her tracks. Her throat had started burning. Her body was tensing, her tail falling slack beneath her. It was an all-too familiar feeling by this point. She was suffocating.

Again, she met eyes with the dragon and could have sworn that behind its fiery eyes it was smiling at her. It was the dragon that was pulling the water from her lungs, so that in her new aquatic body she was as helpless as a human drowning. It was the dragon that was slowly killing her.

Maintaining eye contact, trying not to succumb to the urge to cough and choke and pull at her own throat, she slowly let go of her cutlass. It floated away, the golden weapon drifting upwards and out of sight. The burning didn’t stop, but it might have lessened slightly. Or Patton might have just imagined that.

Keeping her eyes fixed on the creature, she pressed the palms of her hands together and hung her head. In the human world, it would be clear she was begging for her life. She could only hope that the same message could be displayed here. She held the position, letting herself sink lower and lower, not looking up, trying not to let the darkness pushing at the corners of her vision take over.

Because the creature in front of her wasn’t the murder it had been made out to be. She saw the emotions that played behind its golden eyes. If it could feel amusement and anger and condescension, then it must be able to feel mercy and empathy and remorse. Patton couldn’t fight the dragon witch, there was no doubt of that, but she could appeal to its better nature. So, she wrung her hands and silently begged for her life.

Air slammed back into her. She took a long, rasping gasp and raised her head. The dragon had moved closer, it’s face had lowered down to the same level as her own, and it was looking at her with a mixture of curiosity and confusion.

“Thank you.” she spluttered, bowing low again, and sweeping her tail in front of her as she had done when bowing to the Queen. The creature blinked in acknowledgement. The crowd was silent, as was Janus. No one seemed to know what to do, least of all Patton. The dragon seemed to be expecting something.

“Um, can you understand me?” she asked, tentatively. The dragon let out a snort almost like an exasperated laugh and nodded her great, deadly head. Patton laughed nervously, trying to stay on task.

“Do you have a name?”

Again, a nod.

“Can I use it?”

The dragon lifted a paw, but paused as Patton tensed. Almost as if it didn’t want to frighten her further, it slowly began tracing in the stone.

Toita.

“Toita.” Patton said out loud, smiling as the dragon perked up. “Okay, Toita, my name is Patton. Do you know why we’re fighting?”

Toita shook her head.

“Well, I was on this ship, you sea, just a merchant ship, but one day we got a mermaid caught in our net!” She rattled off the entire story. The dragon understood each word, and reacted with a mixture of shock, horror, happiness and, when Patton told her what Janus had done to them, anger.

“So you see,” she finished, “I had no choice but to accept the tasks. I had no idea what the tasks would be, mind you, so while Janus was setting all of this up I trained in my room, hoping it would be some kind of fight because that was the only thing I could really prepare for, that I could think of anyway. I knew I would lose to you as soon as I saw you, but then I realised how intelligent you are, and that we didn’t need to fight, we could just have a conversation.”

The dragon nodded, its eyes roaming her body with a new softness. Slowly, Patton felt the ground beneath her lift up and carry her to the right of the dragon’s neck. Getting the message, she jumped across and clambered aboard the dragon, sitting between its giant horns.

Toita then pushed off of the ground, swimming in one huge circle around the stadium before coming to a stop facing Janus.

Virgil was carefully expressionless, but Patton could see him trying to hide his triumphant smile. Logan, who was the mermaid on the Queen’s other side, just gazed at her. His face was full of a new awe and admiration and love. She tried not to blush, only letting her gaze graze him. He was chained to the seat in front of him with handcuffs, but otherwise seemed unharmed.

Janus was still smiling, but there was something else in her expression now. Something like worry.

“I think I beat your task, your Majesty. What do you have for me next?” Patton asked, smirking.


	17. The Oracle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M ALIVE! Sorry for not posting for so long, I've just started college and stuff has been really hectic. I should be able to post a little more regularly now the initial stress is over though :)

Patton woke up back in her room, or rather her jail. She had no idea how long she had been asleep for, but her head was foggy with the leftovers of unconsciousness and her limbs felt too heavy to even think about getting up.

“Take it easy.” said a familiar voice. She made her eyes search the room and found Virgil sitting next to her, leaning on her bed with a concerned look on his face.

“Vir-il?” She slurred, trying to push the thoughts from her brain to her mouth with great difficulty.

“Calm down, everything’s okay. Janus put another spell on you, only this time she bound the stone to you and ordered us not to remove it. I had no choice but to let you sleep this time or I’d risk doing more damage. The spell was very strong, it might take you a long time to wake up completely, but you can’t go back to sleep. The very fact that she’s let you wake up means the second task is going to be soon.”

“Task?” What task? The second one? All she could remember was a kind dragon, but that seemed more like a dream. Where was Logan? He could explain it to her. He could make everything better. “Logan.” She spluttered, uselessly.

“Logan’s still locked up. I’ve managed to find where Janus is keeping him, but there is no way I can get to him. He’s okay, though, I promise.”

“Logan.” She said again, still struggling to understand. It seemed the smoke in her brain was thinning, but she still couldn’t see through it. Logan would help. She needed him, she loved him. He was hers and she was his and they were going to be together. That’s why she was here, after all. Because they needed to be together. He would make everything alright.

“Patton, you’ve got to work with me here. I know it’s all quick, but I can’t let you go into the second task like this. You need to snap out of it.”

“Can I talk to Logan?” There was an insistence in her head. She needed to speak to him. It was barring her from thinking straight. It was an untouchable need to communicate with Logan, and only Logan. Janus didn’t matter, Vigil didn’t matter. Only Logan mattered.

“No, you can’t. Focus Patton, please.” There was a break in Virgil’s voice. Instinct told her to turn to him and to help him and to make him feel better, but something else held her still. She needed to talk to Logan. It was like an itch inside her brain blotting out everything else. Something unavoidable and all consuming.

And then, as if by magic, the feeling vanished.

“Virgil?” She said, quietly, testing her own voice.

“It’s me.”

“I’m - I’m sorry about that.” She made herself sit up, swinging her tail round beside her. “I don’t know what happened.”

“Describe it.” There was something knowing and - anxious in Virgil’s voice.

“I don’t know. I just needed to talk to Logan. Like, nothing else mattered, that’s all I needed to do. It was like suffocating and Logan was oxygen. I couldn’t even think straight while it was happening.”

Virgil let out a long sigh, glaring at the floor before composing himself and looking back up at her.

“He’s an idiot.”

“Who?”

“Logan. There’s a very complex spell where, supposedly, you can talk to someone else inside their minds.”

“Logan was trying to talk to me?”

“It sounds like it. I let him practise the spell on me from time to time, and the only results he ever had was creating an obsession-like effect, basically what you just described. He’s amazing at spells, the best magic-user I’ve ever known, but he wouldn’t show that particular talent often for some reason, to anyone apart from me that is.”

“So why did he have so much trouble with that spell? I mean, if he could perfect it, wouldn’t that be amazing?”

“That’s the idea. He invented this spell himself. He was so sure it would work, that he could get it to work, he spent years torturing himself over it. In the end, I forced him to stop. He stopped taking care of himself he was so enclosed in his work. It seems now he’s restarted the project, in prison.”

“Does that mean he has a plan?”

“Probably, knowing him. Which really isn’t good. Our best bet is to do what we’re meant to be doing, or Janus will get an excuse to really up the stakes. You got lucky in the first task, Pat. I doubt you’ll be able to ‘kindness’ yourself out next time.”

“I can try.” teased Patton, unable to stop herself winking and suppressing a chuckle at Virgil’s answering groan. “How long have I got?”

“Before the task? I have no idea. I’ve been coming in to see you as often as I can.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’ve already told you, I don’t blame you for any of this.”  
Virgil shook his head.

“No, I know, it’s just there’s so much of this that is making everything really hard for me, and you looked so peaceful asleep. I know it’s weird, and creepy and whatever, but the silence in here is just so rare and I love it. And having you, you’re like a friend. I know you would never think of me like that, but you’re the nicest person I’ve ever met.”

Patton let out a little laugh and ran a finger over Virgil’s leather clad shoulder. She doubted even he realised how he melted into the touch. It wasn’t romantic in any way, it was just a special moment of intimacy she doubted he had been able to partake in before. The idea of someone being so close they could touch you, and yet feeling all the more safer because of it, was something completely new to him, and it was also something he definitely needed.

“Virgil, of course I consider you my friend. You’ve been nothing but kind to me ever since I’ve arrived here. You’ve treated me like a person when you could have so easily separated yourself entirely from the whole situation. You’ve helped me so much, and although I never blamed you, you’ve more than made up for anything you did wrong.”

Virgil let out a long breath, closing his silvery eyes and leaning backwards.

“How can you say that?”

“What do you mean?”

“I read up on you, Patton. I saw what you went through. I know about New York, about what a girl like you living in the streets meant, and at sea. You got kidnapped by pirates and almost drowned and have been forced into the most brutal, terrifying situations. How can you still afford to see the best in people?”

Patton didn’t answer for a while. She couldn’t decide what to say. Her automatic response was the generic one: ‘If I can still be good, then anyone can. It’s worth it to see the best in people. Everyone can be kind, if they try to be’. But something was telling her to open up to Virgil. He was honest and open with her, she should return the favour. Through her whole life, she’d been taught to repress anything that wasn’t ‘lady-like’ and pretend she was a lovey dovey robot without the capacity to feel anything other than joy and pleasure, no matter what happened around her.

“I don’t always see the best in people.” she said, quietly. “Don’t create some image of me as this amazing, kind person, because that’s not me.”

“What do you mean? You are all those things Patton. How can you-”

“No, you don’t understand. I’m not! I’m selfish and ignorant and every time I do something to help someone else, I do it because it’ll make me feel good about myself, and that’s not right! I don’t see the good in people, I just hope to hell the good is there because if it’s not I’d be killed. That’s how my life seems to be going anyway. I’ve done so many things wrong, so many things I’ve run away from instead of trying to fix.”

She could see the disbelief in Virgil’s eyes. He still didn’t understand. She would listen to what he had to say anyway, because at the end of the day it was up to her to be the good person. That was her job, it seemed, no matter how little she was deserving of that title.

He opened his mouth to begin his embankment on whatever dismissive rant he had planned, but before he could even make a sound, he vanished from view in a puff of golden smoke. In his place, Joan and Kai appeared.

Patton hurried off the bed, moving so the furniture was between them to give herself some feeling of safety.

“It’s okay.” said Joan, softly. Kai rolled her eyes, but said nothing this time.

“I’m not a dog. You don’t have to treat me like some frightened animal.” Patton snapped, surprising even herself. Perhaps the conversation with Virgil had left her more on edge than she’d anticipated.

“I didn’t mean to make you feel that way.” they seemed to be genuinely trying to start a conversation with her.

“Just say what you want to say.” she said, trying to make it easier for them.

“I just - what you did was amazing, with the dragon witch. I know if it had been me there I would have turned and swum away as fast as I could. The idea that the Queen put someone as defenceless in front of you in front of a creature like that - well it certainly showed us something new about humans.”

“What they’re trying to say is that you’ve kinda got a few supporters now.” said Kai, her voice heavy. “Before, this was all just entertainment. Watching a human try not to get ripped to shreds. Like watching an ant avoid a magnifying glass. But then you went and survived, and people are starting to side with you. Not against the Queen, but not really with her either.”

“Does that change anything?”

Joan shook their head.

“We obey the Queen’s orders. It’s time for your second task, are you ready?”

“You know I’ve only just woken up since she put me to sleep at the first task?” asked Patton, fiercely. She could sense dissent, maybe she could amplify it. At her words, Joans eyes widened in shock and even Kai began to look less sure of herself. It seemed it didn’t do much different, however, because they then crossed the distance between them and had her once more gripped between the two of them.

“Are you ready?” Joan asked again.

Patton sighed dramatically.

“I guess I don’t really have a choice in the matter.”

Again, they vanished in a puff of golden smoke.

This time, Patton didn’t reappear in some grand arena. Instead, she was in a darkened room, lit only by a single candle floating inside a bubble in front of her. Joan and Kai were gone, but it was instantly obvious that she wasn’t alone. Harsh, raspy breathing seemed to fill the room around her. There was a musty smell, like old books left to dry in front of a fire, and then forgotten about until the pages began to rot.

“Hello again, Patton.” said the familiar voice of Janus. Patton spun around before realising the Queen wasn’t ever here. It was just her voice, dictating what was about to happen from somewhere far away. “I feel obliged to tell you that you once again have an audience, only this time you cannot see it.”

Patton nodded, making sure to remember that. It would be a lot easier to make a fool of herself now that the audience wasn't actually here, not that it really mattered. She doubted anyone would really care either way.

“What do you want me to do then?” She asked, still searching the darkness for whoever she was sharing the space with. It wasn’t that she could feel herself being watching, it was almost as if whoever was there was insisting that she notice them, and yet were still dancing out of sight.

“Well, everyone in our city has to take a test when they are breaching adulthood. They sit with the Oracle, who asks them questions based on possible futures they could live through, and they need to choose the most prosperous path. Now, Logan scored perfectly on this test, he is the only one to ever do so. He spent weeks preparing, and he is still the pride of our city because of it. If you are to be Logan’s lover, if we are to let one of our prize thinkers run off with some human, we need to ensure that you are at least smart enough to keep up with him.”

Patton bit back her glower. Was this really the game Janus wanted to play? It was obvious Patton wasn’t going to be as smart as Logan. All else put aside, she hadn’t had any time to study, or even any time to think about what was coming! If Logan had to study for this, for weeks, then she was thoroughly screwed. How would it even be entertaining for Patton to sit here and get stuff wrong?

“Sit.” said a rasping voice behind her. She spun round automatically to take in the Oracle, who just moved into the light.

The woman was not at all what Patton had imagined. She didn’t match her gasping breaths or raspy voice. She smelt old and mouldy, and yet she was beautiful. Her eyes were black and dull, but they were also large and glossy, framed by long lashes. She clasped a staff, but she stood tall and straight, with porcelain skin and long black hair tied down to escape the grasp of the water.

Now wanting to anger her, Patton quickly swept her tail round and let herself float to the floor.

The Oracle swum round and did the same opposite her, on the other side of the candle.

Unsure how she was meant to act, Patton dipped her head on what she hoped was a respectful nod and kept her gaze lowered. The Oracle huffed, but said nothing. They sat in silence for several minutes. Patton didn’t let herself panic; the woman in front of her wasn’t evil, just strange in a way she would never be able to describe or understand, and that was okay.

“Patton Davis. That is your true name, correct?”

“Yes.” It felt weird to hear the name after so long, weirder to claim it, but she wasn’t about to start lying again. Where had that gotten her last time?

“Tell me what you want from the future.”

Patton looked up, just to gauge what the Oracle was trying to get her to say. The mermaid's face was completely impassive, her eyes firm, her expression impatient.

What did she want?

“I want to make as many people happy as I can.” She said, slowly. She didn’t want to say anything that would drop her into a ditch she couldn’t dig herself out of. “I want to be safe but to keep excitement in my life. I want to never have to lie or hurt anyone else again, and I hope to leave some kind of legacy in my wake.”

“What does happiness mean?”

Patton took a deep breath. There was no gap between each question, nothing she could use to tell how she was doing. The Oracle’s tone didn’t change, nor did her expression. The candle might as well not have been there for all the good her observations were doing her.

“I think happiness is when you forget that things can go wrong. Even if just for a moment, you forget that death is coming or that time is passing or that you’re insignificant. Then you’re happy.”

“I didn’t ask you what you thought happiness means. I asked you what it really meant.”

Patton scrunched her brows, confused. 

“But that’s a relative question.”

“No it’s not. There is a dictionary definition that I expected you to produce.”

“But a dictionary definition is just the opinion of the author of the dictionary! Why is their opinion more correct than mine?”

“Are you arguing with me?” The Oracle didn’t seem angry, if anything she seemed incredulous. Something about her reminded Patton of Logan, the taken aback tones at being challenged for the first time in however long, not knowing how to respond.

“No, I’m just talking to you.” Patton’s smile dropped. “Is that wrong? I’m sorry-”  
“Have you had any time to prepare for this meeting?” The Oracle asked, softly, suddenly sounding far older, like an ancient librarian helping a young girl reach a book.

“No.” said Patton, spreading her palms to show she was being honest. “To tell you the truth, I really don’t know what’s going on. I don’t know what I’m meant to be doing or anything. I’m just trying my best.”

The Oracle opened her mouth, but closed it again, a smooth, emotionless expression sliding into place over the kind one.

“You’d better hope that’s enough.”

Logan would know how to do this. Logan would know the answer to every question, if only he was here. Everything would be okay. Logan would always make everything okay.

With a jolt, Patton realised she couldn’t hear what the Oracle was saying. She could only hear her own voice in her head, insisting again and again for Logan.

He was locked away, but she needed to hold him and listen to him and ask him how to make everything okay, because he would know. He always knew. She needed Logan. She needed him.

“I’m here.” said a familiar voice in her head.


	18. Questions

“Logan!” Patton shouted, unable to help herself. The Oracle gave her an unimpressed sigh; that obviously wasn't the sort of answer she was meant to have given.

Don’t speak to me outloud. Just think and I will hear it. Say yes, that is the correct answer to her question.

Patton apologised out loud, to both Logan and the Oracle, and did what he asked.

Are you okay? She thought, hoping she was doing it right.

Yes, I’m fine. Now stay calm and focus on what the Oracle is saying. I will try my best to guide you through the answers, but this is your future, only you can really say what you truly want to happen.

It’s our future.

Logan’s low chuckle was even audible in this strange, mind communication, and it was the best thing she had ever heard.

“I see a great choice in your future.” said the Oracle, her lips pursed as if she could tell Patton’s attention was forked. “You will have to decide between keeping everything you have gained, or having a chance at something new. What do you think you will choose?”

Keep everything she had gained, or get to keep something new? Well, she hadn’t exactly gained much. And the something new - that meant excitement and happiness. Maybe the something new was Logan?

Answer carefully. Said Logan’s warning voice. Remember this is the future, not the present. You may have a lot more to lose by then, and less to gain.

“Do you know the answer?” asked Patton outloud, trying not to give too much away. “Is that how this works? You know the answer, and you want to see how well I can predict my own actions? How well do I know myself?”

“If you want to put it in the simplest terms, I guess that is correct. Do you have an answer?”

Patton nodded.

“As much as I want safety in life, I want to be happy more, and I want adventure. The last few months have been the best of my life, no matter how many times I’ve almost died, and I’m not going to let the excitement die, ever. I think I’d always choose to let go of what I’ve in exchange for something completely new.”

Nicely phrased. Said Logan, and she felt herself smile at the praise in spite of herself. She had missed him so much, and was now just impatient for them to have a real conversation.

“In the future, you will save a life. Will that make you happy or sad?”

“Happy.” said Patton, at once. Why would she be sad? No matter the cost, everyone deserves to live.

“In the future, you decide whether to turn around or keep facing the way you were meant to be facing. Which do you choose?”

“Is that a metaphor?”

“No.”

“Okay,”

Be very careful. Said Logan, This isn’t just a 50:50 thing here, there are so many variables to the question that predicuting the answer from such little information is almost impossible.

You did it.

I did. Remember you’ve got as much time as you want. I sat there for hours for one question like this. My questioning lasted seven days.

Is that normal?

No. I just wanted to do it right.

Okay. So if I’m having to make the choice, that means I have a reason to look back, right? Like I think there is something behind me?

Yes, but if it’s a choice you have to make, then there’s a reason for you to keep looking forwards as well.

So it’s between safety or excitement again?

I guess so. Look back and make sure you’re safe, or keep looking forwards and experience whatever you’re watching for.

She’s just asking me the same question over and over.

The Oracle works in mysterious ways.

“I would keep looking forwards.” said Patton, trying to sound as sure of herself as possible.

“Why do you love Logan?”

Okay, this was a question she could answer pretty easily. She was sure about this.

“I love learning, and with Logan I could never stop learning. Most things have limits. Even if you shut me in the biggest library in the world, I would finish reading eventually. With Logan, I’ll have to think about something different every day. We both have to work to communicate, to get our points understood, but that makes it so much better because when we finally get what the other one is trying to see we learn so much and see the world in a whole different way. I want to spend the rest of my life learning with him, and teaching him things.”

Oh Patton. Even the voice in Patton’s head sounded breathless. She couldn’t help but blush.

Was it too cheesy?

No. It was perfect. It was just you. I can’t believe - I can’t believe I managed to find someone who would be willing to try to understand me.

I’m more than willing.

I know. You’re excited to understand me, and not just for the end result. You’re excited for the journey.

Exactly.

“Why does Logan love you?”

Patton bit the side of her lip, pondering the question. She thought she knew the answer, she liked to think she did, but it felt out of place for her to share it.

“He will never know what you say.” said the Oracle, as if that was meant to be some comfort. Oh, if only she knew.

I can tell you what to say if you want. He sounded hesitant. She knew at once that he wanted to know what she would say.

I’ll answer.

“Logan loved me because I’m something he’s not yet had a chance to experience. Not only in the fact that I am a different species, but that I am completely uninfluenced by the system that has raised him and everyone else he had ever met. No offence, by the way. I’m also different in that I don’t put safety first, I put kindness and fun, and he thinks I can teach him things he couldn’t even conceive, and he loves to learn too, so it would be perfect.”

How was that?

I couldn’t have said it better myself. You’re so amazing Patton, you know things by just looking, you hear things in a smile and you see things in a laugh. I hope to one day be as wise as you.

“Why would Logan continue to love you?” asked the Oracle.

Patton stared at her, trying to process the question.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, everything you described is exceedingly temporary. You are new and Logan has not experienced anything like you before, that is true, but once he learns what limited novelty you have to share, why should he stay? What else can you offer him?”

Patton stared at her without really seeing. Was she really just temporary? Would Logan get bored of her within the week if they were alone together? In reality, she didn’t have much to offer him. She hadn’t lived much, she hadn’t seen the world or even much of humanity. She was just Patton.

And that’s enough. Patton, I could never get bored of you. I don’t care what you know and what you’ve seen, that’s not what intrigues me. I love you because everything you say is strange and beautiful and I’ve never heard anything like it before. I will never get bored of that.

“He’ll stay because I understand him more than anyone else could.” said Patton, considering his continuing words of reassurance alongside her own thoughts. “He’s been kept down here, where he has tried his hardest to help people and use his talents for good, but because of his difficulties in communicating he cannot reach as far as he wants to, and he cannot appreciate what he has. I can help him understand that he is lovable, that he can grow no matter what and that there are no limits to what he can do. I help him use the voice he’s been speaking in, and he can stop speaking a language he doesn’t know.”

“Do you want children?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“I’ve never wanted children. Being a mother - it’s a role I’ve always been expected to fill but when I sat down and thought about it, I decided I just didn’t want that.”

“What about it don’t you want?”

“The - the physical process. I don’t want to do it.”

I accept that. Said Logan, at once. Never feel pressured to do anything.

She let loose a long breath. It had been a long time since she’d admitted her aversion to sexual intimacy, and last time it had been to herself. Hearing Logan’s comfort was more than she could ever ask for.

“What if Logan wants to? What will you tell him?”

“I will tell him I don’t. I believe he will be considerate, he knows what it’s like to be forced to do something you really don’t want to do, he will emphasise with me.”

“You’re done.”

“I’m - that’s it?”

That was short.

Weirdly short?

Yes. But don’t worry. You are exceptional. We should not expect anything normal to come with anything concerning you. And anyway, we must remember this is all for the Queen’s entertainment. It probably stops when she gets bored.

Janus can stub her toe on a table leg. This is all stupid.

I see you’ve been talking to Virgil.

It took her a moment to realise she had addressed the Queen by her name. It wasn’t like she was going to deny it.

He’s been helping me. Without him, I’d probably already been dead.

I’m glad you’ve had someone.

“You will be notified if you have passed or failed as soon as I come to my decision.” said the Oracle, gracefully getting to her feet, a perfect hand clasping her twisted staff to heave herself into a standing position. Her beautiful tail swept the ground beneath her. “Say hello to Logan for me.” And with that she vanished in a puff of brilliant silver smoke. Patton stared at the spot where she’d been a moment before. Had she meant for Patton to say hello the next time she saw Logan, or did she know-?

Joan and Kai appeared on either side of her a moment later. Neither of them said anything, but Patton was pretty sure Joan had been crying, and even Kai smiled at her before the three of them burst into a puff of golden smoke, emurging a moment later in the same room as before.

“That was beautiful.” choked Joan, taking a seat on the bed. “God, I want someone to love now more than ever.”

Kai rolled her eyes.

“I see if I can find you a pretty sea-slug.”

“I’m serious! I mean, what you said about Logan, about understanding him and wanting to learn from him and - oh my God that was so beautiful! How did you just say all that? Did you lie about not preparing or something?”

“No, I’m just good at putting my feelings into words.” She walked over to Joan and awkwardly patted them on the shoulder. “I don’t know you very well, but I think you’re a nice person. Just be yourself and you’ll be fine.”

“Is that what you did?”

“Me? No, I just put myself in life threatening situations over and over until Logan got so sick of saving me he actually had to talk to me.

Again, she heard Logan laugh in her head. She wanted to capture that sound on record and set it to repeat forever.

“We’ll see you for the final task, if you pass.” said Kia, pulling Joan back to their feet.

“What happens if I don’t?”

“Normally, banishment, which means death in the ocean. I don’t know what the Queen would plan for you.”

“Okay, thank you two. You’ve been nice to me.”

The two of them vanished. Patton threw herself on the bed. She couldn’t stop smiling; finally she was once again alone with her thoughts, or more specifically alone with Logan.

Are you okay? She asked, unable to stop herself feeling worried. Last time she’d seen him, he’d been in chains tied to the Queen’s chair.

I’m fine. Not exactly comfortable, but people have been strangely kind. They keep bringing me food and reading materials. Tell me, do you like cookies?

Cookies? Of course I do!

I had never tried them, but Kai brought me some and I have to say they are most delicious. We should make some together sometime. I mean, if you want.

Logan, I would love nothing more than to make cookies with you.

Thank you. Logan’s voice was soft and honest. She loved that tone, there was so much vulnerability and trust there.

How long before I know if I’ve passed or failed?

It’s normally just a few days, but we have no way to be sure.

How long was it with you?

About three months. Normally, you stay with the Oracle during the time when she’s coming to the decision about whether you passed or failed. I got to know her quite well.

Three months? But I thought you got everything right!

I did. She spent all that time trying to spot something I got wrong, but eventually gave up when she got sick of me.

I don’t know how anyone could get sick of you. She said hello, by the way.

I heard. You’re too kind, Patton.

I have a question.

Yes?

If the Oracle knows the future, and asks you questions based on the answers she sees, why does she spend so long coming to the decision whether you pass or not?

I - I don’t know. I’ve never thought about that before. There was a few seconds pause in which Patton curled up under the blanket, unable to stop smiling.

Maybe she has some say in the outcome after all, then. Maybe she takes the reasoning of your answer into account, or maybe your choices here have some effect on the future, after all, every decision we make changes the path we are to take from there on out, so by choosing to answer her question in a certain way we-

Logan. She interrupted him softly, not even trying to stop herself from smiling. I love you.

He paused for a moment.

I love you too, Patton.


	19. Talking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhhh I'm so sorry this took so long a load of shit happened at once so sorry!! Hope this makes up for it, fluff and angst all in one!

And what did you do then? Asked Patton.

Well, I asked them if they knew that whales had extremely small throats, so they wouldn’t be able to eat a mermaid even if they tried. The guards didn’t take that very well.

I’m sure they didn’t! Oh my God, that’s so funny. They’d been using wales to guard the city all that time?

For thousands of years. No one had ever pointed out the redundancy of this practise before.

And so they stopped after that?

That’s the strange part. They still use whales to this day, even though they know it’s completely useless. Apparently it’s an ancient tradition that must be upheld. 

Patton laughed out loud, leaning against the windows to watch mermaids swimming through the city below. She didn’t know how many days it had been since her meeting with the Oracle, and she didn’t much care. The third task would be approaching, depending on her results from the second, but none of it mattered as much now she had Logan back.

They spent the hours sharing stories, telling each other about their greatest adventures and misfortunes. Admittedly, Logan’s were much more exciting than her own, but he listened to her tales with much interest and offered insights afterwards about the way she had responded. It was the most intelligent conversation she’d ever had the chance to engage in, having never been offered the chance to go to school or even learn from a tutor, so she loved every moment she spent with Logan. Every word that came out of his mouth was perfectly chosen and exceedingly full of meaning.

If by some miracle we manage to get out of this alive… asked Patton, hesitantly. She had been getting good at changing the tone of the voice in her head. What will we do? If we have the whole world to run off to, where would you want to go?

Well said Logan, as though he’d already given the matter much thought. First off, I don’t believe in miracles. We are going to get out of this alive, there is no doubt in my mind, because you are the one doing these challenges. If it were me doing them, I would have doubt. It if were the Queen, or Virgil, or anyone else I know doing these challenges, I would have doubt, but it is you. For as long as I have known you, there has been nothing that you have put your mind to only to fail. You are the wisest, kindest creature I’ve ever known; I guarantee that you are unstoppable.

So, to answer your question, I would like to explore. We have the entire world, as you say. The Queen says she will give us malachite, which will mean we can change between forms as we please. Also remember that I am reasonably accomplished when it comes to spellwork. There is no reason our adventure needs to have bounds.

I love you. Mused Patton, more to herself than to Logan. I love you so so much. Let’s go see everything. Let’s sit and watch the most beautiful things on Earth and not think about the future for a moment. Let’s go and learn things that are almost forgotten. Let’s do things no one would even think to want to do.

Let’s conquer the world.

Yes. Let’s conquer the world. In our own way. The world will become ours and we will become its.

It sounds so perfect. It’s - Logan paused. Patton waited patiently. It’s exactly what I’ve always wanted, and never known I wanted. I never realised how little I liked here, how sad I was in the life I was living. I never even considered leaving. Now I know it’s going to happen - God I can’t wait.

There was a puff of smoke, this time purple.

Virgil emerged from it, coughing.

“Are you okay?” Patton asked, only just remembering to question out loud.

“Yeah. It’s the first time I’ve used that spell myself, normally I get one of the guards to let me in.”

“Why didn’t you this time?”

“Because Janus has banned anyone coming anywhere near you. She seems to think you’re getting through these tasks too easily.” Virgil’s scowl faded into a much softer smile. Inside her head, Patton heard Logan let out a small gasp. She wondered when he’d last seen Virgil smile. “Speaking of the tasks,” Virgil continued, oblivious, “You passed! The Oracle released the results today; you passed her tests, barely apparently. Janus forbid us to tell you but screw her.”

Patton let loose a shuddery laugh, breaking into a smile herself and pulling Virgil into a hug.

“I didn’t know you had it in you.” said Virgil, truthfully.

“Me neither. But I had no idea what was happening, so maybe that gave me an advantage.”

“Maybe so. You wait, after everyone sees a human can pass without study no one’ll ever open one of the oracle books again. No offense.”

“None taken. Um, Virgil.” she wanted to tell him about Logan watching from her mind before he could say anything he might come to regret. 

"Yes?”

Before she could get the words out, Logan spoke up.

Don’t tell him about me. He’ll probably freak out and run. We need him. He’s our one connection to the outside world.

Hating the feeling, Patton ignored him. She liked Virgil; she wasn’t going to lie to him for information.

“About Logan-”

“Ah, Logan, I was going to tell you about him as well. Apparently, he’s gone really really quiet. Most people are quite worried, but I’m thinking he’s realised that you might actually have a chance here. Of course, he should have known that right from the start, but you know I’ve always thought he looked down on you. He thought you were weaker than you actually are. It’s not his fault of course, he’s used to looking down on people, but-”

“Virgil!” Patton had to raise her voice to get him to stop talking. He blinked, seeming to realise how much he had actually said.

Logan let loose a low growl in Patton’s head.

“Virgil, listen.”

“No, you listen.” Virgil swam forwards, taking Patton’s hands in his own. His fingers were long and cold, the nails cut short probably where he’d been biting them. “You can do better than Logan, Patton. Logan, he’s cold and dark and he doesn’t understand feelings.”

Tell him to leave. Tell him to shut up.

Patton opened her mouth, not to say that, but to say something, anything, before he said something he would come to regret.

She was too late.

“I can get you out of here now. We can leave together. We’re not in love, but we don’t have to be. You said we were friends. That’s enough, right? We can just be friends together. I have malachite. I want what you promised Logan. I could treat you better than Logan ever would.”

“Virgil.” Patton closed her eyes and looked down. “Logan got the spell working.” she said to the floor.

“What?”

“The spell that meant he could speak to me in my mind. He’s doing it right now. He can - he can hear everything.”

Virgil froze. Even his tail went completely still. His eyes darkened as he comprehended what Patton had just said, the glowing orbs falling away to be replaced by dark holes. Any colour in his cheeks drained; his hands slowly balled into fists. Unable to help herself, Patton moved away.

Get further. Said Logan. Get the hell away from him.

He’s just upset. I shouldn’t have told him sooner. This is my fault.

No. It’s him not thinking about the consequences of his actions. You did nothing wrong.

“Virgil, it’s okay. You don’t have to worry. It’s all okay.”

“I should go.”

Good.

“No, please don’t. Sit down. Let’s talk about this.”

“No, no, I get it. I screwed up. I never should have opened my mouth in the first place.” He swam back, turning away from her, his eyes still as dark as the night.

“Virgil stop. Please look at me. It’s going to be okay, Kiddo. I’m glad you said what you did, it was kind, I understand what you meant. Let’s talk about this.”

Logan, perhaps wisely, stayed quiet.

Virgil hesitated for a moment. Patton thought she might have gotten through to him. But then he turned back towards her, his eyes almost totally black now, and when he spoke his voice had a strange, echoy tone to it.

“Don’t. I know it’s gone wrong. Now let me leave, or things will get a hell of a lot worse I promise you that.”

I’m going to kill him. Snarled Logan in Patton’s head. He can’t talk to you like that.

“Please don’t leave.” Patton said, softly.

“You can’t stop me.”

“I’m not stopping you, I’m asking you.”

“And I’m saying no.”

Patton paused. When Virgil made no move to leave, she spoke again, tentatively, trying not to say anything that might make him think he’d done something wrong again.

“Virgil, you’re probably the best friend I’ve ever had. You listen to me, you help me, you’re the first person I’ve met who feels things as thoroughly as I do. I would like nothing more than for us to be friends for ever, to run away right now, to leave this all behind, but I can’t. Logan’s here, and I love him, but that doesn’t mean I can’t love you to. Just in different ways.”

"I don’t love you romantically.”

“I know, that’s what I’m saying. Me loving Logan doesn’t mean I can’t love you. I know stuff happened between you two, but if you can see the worth in forgiving him, and he can see the logic in forgiving you, I think there’s still something between you to be saved. You did nothing wrong, okay? It was up to me to tell you that Logan was here, and I left it for too long. I didn’t want to scare you, I didn’t want you to leave. I need you just as much as I need him, Virgil, now and for the rest of my life.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“Of course I do, kiddo. Lying is wrong!”

Virgil’s paranoid expression didn’t fade, but his eyes began to brighten. Slowly, letting him see her movements, she reached out and brushed the side of his face. He closed his eyes, leaning in and letting out a breath.

Did you really mean that? Really? Asked Logan. Patton tried to read his tone, to work out what he was thinking, and failed.

Yes. I’ve come to care about him as much as I care about you. In a different way, but I’m not leaving him behind, Logan. He needs me and I need him as much as the two of us need each other. I hope you can understand.

I don’t understand. Patton’s heart sank. But I owe it to you to try. I’m sure that there is a lot that I do and say that you don’t understand, and you try for me.

“What’s he saying?” asked Virgil, quietly. There wasn’t much hope in his expression.

“He’s saying he’s willing to try and make this work if you are.” she made an attempt at a smile. “Whatever this is.”

Virgil’s eyes brightened, the darkness ebbing away completely.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow. You really have had an effect on him.”

Tell me about it.

“He agrees.”

“First time that’s happened.” Virgil made a tentative smile.

Patton smiled back, unable to help herself, letting the beam spread across her face until her cheeks hurt.

The room burst into golden smoke.

“Get back!” Virgil shouted, grabbing Patton around the waist and forcing her to the back of the room before turning to face the clearing smoke. In its place, Joan and Kai came into view, their expressions dire.

Get out. Find a way out. This last task will kill you, Patton. You’ve been lucky so far, but you can’t do this for much longer. You need to get out of there.

Let me know if you spot a door then. Snapped Patton. She knew Logan was panicking; she was doing the same thing, but he needed to get a grip. 

“Virgil?” said Joan, obviously surprised to see him there. “I thought this room was off limits.”

“Like that was going to stop me.”

“Yeah yeah, you’ve got friends in high places.” yawned Kai “Move out the way.”

“You’re not taking Patton.”

“Who’s going to stop us? You’ve never raised a weapon in your life! You’ve barely cast a spell. You’ve just talked and talked.”

“Okay, okay, everyone calm down.” said Joan, raising his hands and moving between Virgil and Kia. “This isn’t a wound we need to reopen. Look, let me explain what’s going on. The Queen has announced the third task, and apparently it’s happening now, like right now.”

“Did she say what it was?” asked Patton, nervously.

“No, well, not really.” Joan fumbled, as if intentionally trying not to say something.

Kai rolled her eyes.

“She asked for a outer-chair.”

“What’s that?”

It’s a chair that is used if someone is having a spell put on them to send them into a kind of dream state. If you are in the chair, and someone uses the correct spell, your consciousness will be takes somewhere altogether different while your body remains in the same space.

Is it safe?

No. If you die in the outer-state, that’s what it’s called, you will die in real life. Do not let them take you, Patton.

“You’re not taking her anywhere.” growled Virgil, ignoring Patton’s question, probably correctly assuming Logan had answered it.

“We’re not planning on taking her to the third task.” said Kai, with an exasperated sigh. “We’re taking her out. We’ve discussed it, and we want to help Patton escape. Who knows what it would do to our positions, but it’s worth it.”

“Is that right?” said Janus, from behind them.


	20. The Third Task

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiii sorry this is a little short I am really losing motivation for this. I promise I'm going to finish it, but I guess I'll just be updating it much less regularly. Thanks to everyone who is still reading!

Patton had no idea how long Janus had been hovering there, listening. It didn’t really matter. She doubted there was a single thing in the entire mermaid city that didn't reach the Queen’s ears.

“Do you really believe that, Joan? You’ve worked hard to climb to your rank. Would you really throw it all away so easily? Perhaps I misjudged you.”

“Your majesty.” Kai spluttered, seeming to be lost for words.

Stay back Patton. Said Logan’s comforting voice. Stay calm. She can’t hurt you. Virgil won’t let her.

“Guards, I asked you to bring the human to me. I think you should know that I will not accept disloyalty.”

Patton waited for Joan and Kai to turn on her, for them to raise their spears and take her by the shoulders and deliver her to Janus. They wouldn’t disobey such a direct order; they couldn’t. It would be akin to signing their own death warrant.

And yet she watched as they both turned towards Janus, not saying a word, and moved their spears to cross in front of Patton, baring Janus from her.

Janus’ eyes widened in mock surprise. She had been expecting this. Patton, on the other hand, stared at the two guards in front of her. What had she done for them? What made them think that she could do something, that she could do anything to repay them for this sacrifice? She didn’t deserve it, not that they knew that.

“Well, well, well. So far, I have lost my smartest mind, my most influential voices and two of my best guards to one simple human and her pretty smile. Tell me, Patton, what do you plan on stealing next?”

“She’s stolen nothing.” spat Virgil, “It’s you who has turned us away. Why so spiteful, your majesty? Why go to all that trouble, why set up these tasks, for Patton? It’s sure as hell not to make sure she’s ‘suitable’ for Logan, or whatever bullshit excuse you use. What point are you trying to prove, other than you’re petty and shallow and get angry as soon as someone dares to look you in the eye?”

“You see?” said Janus, waving a hand at Virgil but ignoring his questions, still aiming her taunts at Patton.

Don’t listen to anything she says. Warned Logan, She wants to scare you, to sow doubt. Just don’t listen.

“You’ve already convinced everyone in this room, it seems, that you’re perfect. But we both know that’s not true, don’t we Patton?” 

There was something knowing in Janus’ smile. Something that made Patton’s gut drop from beneath her. She stared at the mermaid Queen without really seeing. Her body seemed to become something else entirely.

“Leave her alone!” Shouted Virgil. Patton remembered vaguely that he knew about her past too. He must hate her, really.

Don’t listen. Logan repeated, but Patton couldn’t hear him over the rushing in her ears. He started shouting, screaming at her, but it got lost in the whirlwind in her mind. Did Janus know? How could she? If she knew - if she told them all everything - everything would be over.

She could feel Virgil tense alongside her. He was the only one who knew what she had done, but she doubted even he knew the extent of it.

“What would your friends say?” Janus’ voice somehow snaked through the chaos clamouring for escape in Patton’s skull. “What would all of these new people, who care about you, what would they say if they knew what you had done? It would probably kill them. It would probably burn them. Don’t you think?”

Logan was gone from Patton’s head. Virgil was gone from her side. There was nothing between her and the snake queen, nothing to protect her, no one to save her.

Her body hit the floor too hard for the underwater city. Vibrations shuddered through knees that weren’t there. She wrapped her arms around herself and let herself slump onto the stone, pulling herself tight into a ball. Laughter surrounded her, pounding into her, demanding to get in. And she was powerless to fight it.

“Patton! Patton!”

Patton screwed her eyes shut. She hated shouting. She had hated it ever since that day, but it never seemed to stop.

Hands were pulling at her, trying to split open the shell she’d built around herself. She pulled in tighter, they weren’t going to reach her, she was safe. She had to be safe.

“Wake up, Patton.”

Was that Virgil’s voice? No. The voice wasn’t gravelly enough. Logan? No, it was too desperate, and it was a real voice. She was pretty sure it wasn’t in her head. Maybe it was Thomas; maybe the whole thing had been a dream. No, Thomas was dead. So was the Duke, and Emile, and the rest of the crew. Joan? There was none of their softness. Kai? None of her ferocity. Who did that leave…

Her eyes flicked open and focused in on the scales snaking up half of Janus’ face. The Queen was smiling down at her, the smirk lost to the promise of pain in her eyes. Patton met her stare, hating how her breath hitched with the fear she was trying so hard to suppress. Janus chuckled and moved away without a word, leaving Patton to come to terms with her new surroundings.

She was sitting in some sort of metallic chair. Her wrists were cuffed to the sides and there was a band around her scalp holding her to the head of the chair. Her tail hung loose, but because of the way the rest of her body was bound she could hardly move it. The room seemed to be completely empty apart from the chair, herself and Janus. She could only see what was directly in front of her, and the wall was less than a metre away. The room couldn’t have been large; there were no windows she could see and the door was probably behind her.

Logan? She tried, reaching out into the empty depths of her mind. Nothing. Either something had forced him out of her mind or something had gone wrong on his end - no. She wasn’t going to think about that. Who knows how long she’d been unconscious this time? Or in whatever panicky dreamstate she had just woken from. It made sense that Logan would have left her mind if he was just staring at her unconscious eyelids.

Janus was still out of sight, but was making no noise. She was probably just trying to make her nervous. Patton gritted her teeth and waited for the real game to start.

Eventually, the Queen seemed to get bored. She moved back into Patton’s eye-line, one hand holding her curved staff and the other grasping what looked like ingredients for a spell. Patton eyed them warily, but there wasn't much she could do, save from gently patting Janus from an awkward angle with her tail.

“What are you going to do?” she asked, proud of how strong her voice sounded. She assumed she had an audience like she had in the first and second tasks; maybe Logan was watching. Or Virgil. She’d even be strong for Joan or Kai at this point. As long as someone was out there hoping she wasn’t about to die, she could do this. She could be strong.

“Why would I tell you that?” teased Janus, obviously hoping that Patton was going to try and push her. Patton tried to think how she could use this to her advantage.

“If you tell me, I might be able to plan something. That’d make it more entertaining, right? Me actually doing things that might work out, rather than me running into the first bit of danger and dying instantly because I didn’t know it was coming. You want a show, don’t you? Not just an execution.”

Janus’ brow arched; she was obviously impressed with Patton’s answer. The Queen made a display of considering Patton’s request for information, raising a finger to her chin and tapping it against the scaled-half of her face.

“Okay,” she said at last, “I’ll tell you what you’re up against. It’s up to you if you think it’ll do you any good.”

She paused, probably just for theatrical effect, before continuing with what was presumably a very rehearsed speech.

“I am going to cast a spell on you that will launch your consciousness into a memory. As far as you’re concerned, you will be reliving this memory; you will feel like everything you witness is real when in actuality you will not leave your room. It’s like a dream, except if you die you will stay dead, or so close to death it makes no difference. This spell is forbidden to cast among mermaids.” A deadly smile spread across Janus’ lips, “So it’s a good job you’re nothing but a scrawny little human. Now, as for the memory you’ll experience, it will be your worst one. Your very worst memory. We both know what that is; as does Virgil. Everybody else is about to see what you did. We’ll see if Logan still loves you after he knows what you did. We’ll see if half of my city still pities you. We’ll see who can ever look you in the eye once everyone you’ve come to care about finds out that you’re a murderer.”

Patton opened her mouth, needing to say something, having no idea what.

Janus didn’t even let her make a sound.

“Don’t think you’ll be able to justify what you did by me allowing you to re-do it. All I’m doing is showing everyone the truth. Remember, this is real. The hearts you’re about to break are real. What is about to happen is all a dream. A dream that, with any luck, should kill you, leaving nothing but a sour taste in our mouths in your wake.”

“At least they will see I was regretful.” spat Patton. She did know where her anger was coming from, but there was no stopping it now. “At least they will see that I hated myself every single day for what I did. They might no longer want to even look at me, but they will know I never meant anyone to get hurt. And then they will look at you. And they will see a creature who stewed in jealousy and resentment until she decided to take it out on someone who lives their life in fear, and in the faint hope they might be able to make amends for their terrible terrible wrong. You don’t want to make amends Janus. You’re not sorry for what you’re about to do to me. I never did anything to you; the people who are leaving you are leaving because of you, not me. It’s not my fault that I made them feel safer, made them feel like there is something worth living for more than rank.

Once this is over, your city will have a decision to make. They can forget about the girl who tried every day to make up for what she did wrong, who did what she could for the people she met and who tried so hard to be a good person. Or they can remember her, and they can remember who killed her. I might leave a sour taste, Janus, but you will leave pain and suffering. You will leave hatred.”

With every word that Patton spoke, she could see the anger growing stronger in Janus’ dark eyes. The smile didn’t fall from the snake's mouth; nothing in her expression changed, but when she raised the spell ingredients in her hands, it was clear that there was the malice of a hundred angry Gods in the motion.

Ignoring Patton’s feeble struggles, Janus placed the black stone and the dried plant on her lap and began chanting. Patton did what she could to flick the objects away, to escape. She shouted, trying to cover up whatever Janus was spewing, but it was no good. As soon as the Queen stopped speaking, Patton felt sleep pulling her away.

The third task had started.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'm mainly writing this to get feedback on my writing style so leave any comments of what you like or dislike!! :))


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